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Arsenal and Liverpool have reportedly made enquiries regarding the availability of Eintracht Frankfurt defender William Pacho. As reported by Sky Sports Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg, the two Premier League giants have gotten in touch with the die Adler for the Ecuador international's signature.
As claimed by Plettenberg, 22-year-old Pacho could be available for a figure of around €50-60 million, which is the asking price set by the Bundesliga side. With the player contracted at the Deutsche Bank Park until 2028, Frankfurt remain in a strong position in terms of negotiating.
Pacho has made a name for himself at quite a young age and his stocks have been very high since his switch to Eintracht Frankfurt last summer. Having come through the youth ranks of Independiente del Valle, the Ecuadorian joined Belgian side Royal Antwerp in 2022.
William Pacho made such a strong impression at Royal Antwerp that Frankfurt raided them in a year to bring the ball-playing center-back to their ranks. He has grown from strength to strength since his move to the Bundesliga side and has caught the eye of Europe's elites like Arsenal and Liverpool.
Pacho has been almost ever-present in Eintracht Frankfurt's backline this season having made 39 appearances across all competitions. The 22-year-old is also capped 10 times for Ecuador so far and belongs to the elite pool of talents produced by the South American country in recent history.
Blessed with a frame of 6 ft 2 in and physically strong, Pacho has all the qualities a modern-day defender aspires to have. He is pretty fast, great on the ball and on top of that, he is also left-footed which elevates his stock even higher.
Liverpool could lose Joel Matip this summer with his contract expiring, which means they could do with a big addition at the back. Arsenal, on the other hand, have been the best side in the Premier League defensively but Pacho's addition could provide them solid competition for places.
Rafa Benitez backs Arsenal and Liverpool to keep fighting Manchester City for the title
Former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has claimed that his former club and Arsenal can still beat Manchester City for the title. Both sides lost their Premier League games last weekend handing Manchester City an advantage in the three-horse race who defeated Luton Town 5-1.
Pep Guardiola's side currently find themselves at the top of the table with a two-point advantage on both their title rivals. However, Rafael Benitez reckons that there could still be a twist in the tale.
The Spaniard said (via Sky Sports):
"Manchester City are playing with a lot of confidence. They have a good squad – they can change three or four players and still win easily. Can I see them making similar mistakes as Liverpool and Arsenal did this weekend? Yes, I can. But at the same time the others could make mistakes so I think City have a great advantage."
Benitez added:
"I watched both games and Liverpool had some bad luck because they had some great chances. A similar thing happened with Arsenal, they were better in the first half but then they lost control of the game and they were suffering. I think, like Liverpool, being in this position where they cannot lose games or drop points affected them."
Manchester City have a comparatively easier set of fixtures remaining in their hands while Liverpool's fixtures are also quite kind. Arsenal, meanwhile, have a very difficult set of games remaining.
