Arne Slot 'hugely impressed' by Liverpool star who may be sold this week

Fabio Carvalho has made a big impression on new Liverpool manager Arne Slot in pre-season but could still be sold in the next week or so. The Reds have just rejected a bid up to £15million from Southampton for the attacker.

The 21-year-old never truly asserted himself at Liverpool under previous manager Jurgen Klopp. He made only made eight starts under the German and was brought off at half-time in three of those. Only once did Carvalho play a full 90 minutes.

The Portugal under-21 international instead spent last season out on loan. He struggled in a six-month stint at RB Leipzig in Germany before finding form for Hull City in the Championship with nine goals and two assists in 20 games.

And since returning to Merseyside, Carvalho has caught the attention of Klopp's successor Slot. He scored in pre-season wins over Arsenal and Manchester United over in the United States and was excellent in both matches.

That's despite starting as a left-sided winger when he prefers to play centrally as a No.10. The Athletic say the Dutch coach is hugely impressed by Carvalho in pre-season and sees himself utilising his talents in his maiden campaign at Anfield.

Yet the Reds could still sell the former Fulham man, who only joined for £5m rising to £7.7m two years ago, for a handsome profit instead. They rejected Southampton's offer because their valuation is substantially higher than £15m.

Liverpool will not allow Carvalho to leave on loan but at the right price would be willing to sell him. Due to the competition in the forward line, it is unclear how much game time Slot can promise the Portuguese.

Carvalho has Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota for competition on the left with Darwin Nunez expected to be the first-choice No.9 in 2024-25. As such, a departure may be green-lit given the forward has not hidden his desire to be a key player.

Liverpool's transfer activity is expected to ramp up in the next week, both incoming and outgoing. Discussions will be held between the club and Carvalho's representatives in the coming days to come to a conclusion on his future.

Carvalho has made it clear he'd prefer to stay at Liverpool - but only if he's going to play regularly. "Every footballer wants to be playing week in and week out and I feel I got the best of myself when I was there [at Hull] and playing," he said.

"That's the target, to stay here. I'm just having fun and enjoying the time that I'm here, and learning a lot of new things. That's the most important thing."

Carvalho has also clarified that he sees himself as a No.10 - not as a wide-man. And that means if another club can offer him guaranteed game time in his preferred role, he might lean towards moving on.

He added: "I think I play better as a number 10. We spoke about it and [Slot] told me to try and settle on the wing but obviously I know where I play best and I feel that is as a number 10.

"I'm just going to do what he wants me to do and just work as hard as I can for him. He’s giving me good instructions and motivating me a lot in training and giving me that confidence.

"Yeah [I want to make an impact], that's what it is all about. Not just for me but for everyone involved. There's good chances for the young players as well, for myself as well. It's a good chance for everyone to put their foot down and stamp their mark."

Fulham and Leicester are other clubs keen on Carvalho if Southampton do not improve their bid. It is thought a whole host of other clubs have made their interest in the player known if he is made available.