Liverpool confirmed they had secured the signing of Arthur Melo on loan from Juventus, with Jurgen Klopp signing a midfielder they sorely needed ahead of the deadline. Liverpool made an unexpected deadline day move for Juventus midfielder Arthur Melo, with captain Jordan Henderson becoming the latest midfielder to be sidelined by injury. Liverpool must work out Liverpool’s midfield situation following the injury of Jordan Henderson in their win against Newcastle on Wednesday.
It was unclear if Liverpool would sign the midfielder, with Jurgen Klopp highlighting it has to be the right player, with a transaction having to make sense. Jurgen Klopp insisted as recently as last week that it was unlikely Liverpool would make further signings after Fabio Carvalho and Darwin Nunez arrived at the start of the summer. The controlled player is set to join a side undergoing an injury crisis, forcing them to look for players to fill their positions. Expectations are that Arthur is a player of a specific technical calibre since he is a little Brazilian midfielder who formerly played for Barcelona, and such expectations are reasonable. The 26-year-old uses close control, balance, and vision to make sure the ball performs what it wants it to do. He has excellent basics and hardly ever makes a poor touch, even in closed areas.
Although Arthur sometimes drifts away from Massimiliano Allegri’s side, the Juve manager has dramatically appreciated the player and complimented his enthusiasm and “amazing” technical skills earlier this year. Only two Juventus players had an average of more successful passes completed per 90 last year than Arthur. While Thiago excels at penetrating forward balls between the lines, he was mid-ranking in the team for progressive passes, suggesting that much of his possession play was brief and safe rather than more penetrative. Being a midfielder who frequently played in deeper positions, his creative stats are pretty unimpressive, with 0 Serie A goals or assists last season. He will instead contribute more to the squad without the ball.
Liverpool’s deal for Arthur is set to cost EUR 4.5m per season, with the possibility of permanently buying the midfielder for EUR 37.5m. However, Liverpool is not expected to exercise this clause, leaving the door open for them to move on from main midfield target Jude Bellingham of Borussia Dortmund next summer. Juventus midfielder Arthur Melo is expected to be fit to feature in Liverpool’s Premier League away game at Everton on Saturday afternoon. However, given that he has not played a competitive match since May, it is unlikely he will start at Goodison Park.
