Liverpool boss Klopp could go for Rodrygo after failing to sign him at 16

The Brazilian star will reportedly see his minutes in the first-team slashed if Real Madrid sign Kylian Mbappe, who has been transfer-listed by Paris Saint-Germain. That could potentially lead to the 22-year-old becoming unsettled and seeking a move elsewhere.

Real Madrid are the favourites to sign Mbappe, with PSG already believing they have struck an agreement with the French sensation at the end of his contract next year. That suspicion has seen PSG put the forward up for sale in a bid to cash in on him before he leaves for a free next year.

A number of Premier League clubs have also been linked while other reports claim that Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal have offered him a stunning £173.2m per-year deal that includes a clause which will allow him to join Real Madrid in 2024.

Which side Mbappe will join remains to be seen but Rodrygo will likely have a keen eye on the transfer saga as his future could be directly impacted. According to Sport, Rodrygo will be the fall guy if the PSG star makes the move to the Bernabeu with Carlo Ancelotti trialling a 4-4-2 system that could see Vinicius Junior and Mbappe play up front.

Liverpool are currently prioritising at least one more midfield signing following the captures of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai and have not been linked with Rodyrgo. However, Klopp is a known admirer having tried to sign him when he just 16 during his first season at Liverpool.

“When Rodrygo went to sign his first professional contract with Santos, aged 16, a Liverpool director called me saying that Klopp already knew the player, had seen the material, had already come to see Rodrygo personally,” Rodrygo’s agent, Nick Arcuri, revealed last year.

“He had gone on YouTube, searched ‘talents from Brazil’, Rodrygo had appeared and he was very young. He came to Brazil and liked him. They contacted me, the Liverpool director wanted him to be his first signing, Rodrygo.”

Klopp never got his wish with Rodrygo going on to sign for Real Madrid instead back in 2019. But with Mohamed Salah turning 32 next year, and with Rodrygo’s future seemingly set to be brought into question, Klopp could well try his luck again.