Liverpool need to tend to the midfield this summer and have earmarked Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves as a potential option on the transfer market.
What's the latest on Ruben Neves to Liverpool?
According to Spanish outlet Sport, Barcelona are firmly in the driving seat for the transfer of Neves, although persisting interest from Premier League giants such as Jurgen Klopp's Reds, Arsenal and Manchester United is presently keeping the race open.
Neves has been impressive for club and country for several years now and is seemingly ready to depart from Molineux and ply his trade at a Champions League-level club capable of contesting for silverware regularly.
Valued at £50m, the 26-year-old's contract expires at the end of next season and with no resolution in sight, looks set to be granted his departure in a matter of mere months.
Should Liverpool sign Ruben Neves?
Neves has forged 174 appearances in the Premier League, scoring 21 goals and serving nine assists, and has been the central talisman for the Old Gold since helping orchestrate the rise from the Championship and an odyssey to the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
Signing for Wolves from Porto in 2017 for roughly £15m, Neves has been hailed as "incredible" by teammate Hugo Bueno for his exploits at the nucleus of his club's endeavours, boasting verve and tenacity to make the ground shudder as he dictates play from the centre.
As per FBref, the £50k-per-week ace ranks among the top 10% of midfielders across Europe's big five leagues for total shots, the top 18% for attempted passes and progressive passes, the top 2% for blocks, the top 12% for clearances and the top 16% for interceptions per 90.
Effectively, he is a midfielder that can do it all: he's the quintessential modern machine.
Recording an average league rating of 7.28 this term, as per Sofascore, the 39-cap Portuguese has scored six goals from 31 starts, averaging two shots and 0.9 key passes, completing 84% of his passes and remarkably making 2.3 tackles and clearances per match.
He is the "leader" – as hailed by BBC's Simon Stone – that Klopp covets, and with Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson now 32 years old and starting just 21 of his 32 top-flight fixtures this term, a replacement could indeed be required.
Neves' possible arrival on Merseyside could spell disaster, however, for prodigious rising star Stefan Bajcetic, at least in the short run.
The 18-year-old Spaniard had enjoyed a dazzling breakout season with the Reds and glistened like a diamond among rubble while his outfit was embroiled in severe woes, but for an untimely injury in March ruling him out for the remainder of the campaign.
Dubbed "outstanding" by pundit and club icon Jamie Carragher for his feats, playing 19 times for the senior side and scoring one goal, Bajcetic occupies a similar position to Neves and similarly flourishes with an all-encompassing sheen to his deep-lying role, ranking among the top 22% of midfielders for rate of goals, the top 25% for successful take-ons and the top 22% for interceptions per 90.
Any midfield arrivals could hinder the progress of Bajcetic next season, but if managed well, the young gem could still find ample opportunity to impress and perhaps even absorb the fruits of Neves' labour, should he indeed switch gold for red next season.