Liverpool and Manchester United are sparring to sign Ruben Neves according to reports. The 19-year-old Portuguese international has amassed 75 appearances for Porto in all competitions already and is touted as one of the most promising youngsters in world football.
The versatile midfielder has been coveted by the biggest European clubs for a while and though Porto's price tag has often put off clubs that have looked to snap him up have now been alerted that he will be available for around €20 million Euros. Porto have reportedly been in dire financial trouble and need to cash in on some of their best players. Hector Herrera is also said to be on the market, and is close to wrapping up a transfer to Napoli for a slightly larger fee soon.
Klopp is apparently keen on Neves, although Polish International Piotr Zielinski and the German Mönchengladbach youngster Mahmoud Dahoud are also on the former Dortmund manager's list. It seems unlikely that Liverpool will sign all three of these players though, and who eventually ends up at Anfield might depend on how the negotiations for the aforementioned players (who all have multiple suitors) turn out.
Manchester United are also said to be monitoring the Porto midfielder, and the fact that their new manager Jose Mourinho and Neves share the same agent in Jorge Mendes could be instrumental in deciding the player's future.
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Neves was aged only 17 years and five months when he made his Primeira Liga debut, when he became the youngest player in the club's history to score a goal in the competition.He played his first game in the UEFA Champions League five days later, and broke another record of being the youngest Portuguese to appear in the tournament as he started in a 1–0 win at Lille OSC in the play-off round.
Although primarily a defensive midfielder, Neves has a great first touch and excellent distribution and would seamlessly slot into both United and Liverpool's midfield.
Although he has been linked with a host of clubs, including Arsenal and Chelsea, over the last year since his Porto breakthrough in 2014, the race for his signature is reported to be between England's two most storied clubs, at least for the time being.
