Arthur Melo has 22 caps for Brazil but only two of those came in the last three years
Arthur Melo, touted as one of Brazil’s greatest talents, has lost some of his ‘magic’ but a move to Liverpool could boost his career and solve the Reds’ midfield dilemma.
Manager Jurgen Klopp was hoping to bring in a new midfielder in this window, saying the one he wanted came off as Aurelien Tchouameni joined Real Madrid in a deal Reportedly worth up to £86million.
Liverpool have also been repeatedly linked with a move for Borussia Dortmund’s England international Jude Bellingham next summer and Klopp said he would “like to take a little more risk” in the market but the Reds have a careful transfer strategy.
Some less obvious deals have developed into hugely successful signings and since 2015, when Klopp arrived, Liverpool have the lowest net spend of the perceived big six – £744m over that period was offset by £493m in player sales, according to football data site Transfermarkt.
It means a loan move for Arthur could prove the ideal stopgap measure, although the Brazilian will also be a valuable asset if he can fulfill his potential.
“Arthur is seen in Brazil as a player with huge potential who left Gremio between 2017 and 2018 as one of the best in the country,” Brazilian journalist Jorge Natan told ` Sport.
“His arrival at Barcelona raised expectations that he could become one of the most important athletes of the Brazil national team in the years to come due to his versatility as a midfielder – very skillful with the ball, with great passing ability, as is required of great midfielders today.
“But his arrival in Europe seems to have taken some of the magic out of his talent.”
Arthur, who handed his Gremio debut as an 18-year-old to Luiz Felipe Scolari, was courted by several European clubs before joining Barcelona in 2018 and made 72 appearances in all competitions during his two seasons with the Catalan giants.
“I always blamed Arthur Melo for being a little conservative with his football in Barcelona,” says Spanish football expert Guillem Balague.
“But that wasn’t all his fault – it wasn’t Barcelona who moved a lot without the ball. Arthur often just gave conservative passes, not as many through balls as he was there for.”
Juventus paid nearly £70m to sign him in 2020 in what was essentially a swap deal for Miralem Pjanic, only for the Serie A side to have had to go through three managers since his arrival – Maurizio Sarri, Andrea Pirlo and Massimiliano Allegri.
“With that style he has [Sarri] plays – high pace, midfielders who are very physical, it just didn’t work for him,” adds Balague.
“Then Pirlo started playing against him, he did well and there were a couple of games where he was the one with the most accurate passing and it certainly suited what Pirlo wanted to do – and then Pirlo left. “
This also coincided with a string of injuries that have seen him miss 23 games since December 2020, according to Transfermarkt, and Natan says he is unlikely to feature in Tite’s World Cup squad next November.
“Physical problems and changes of club stopped his development and took away his place in the Brazilian team,” explains the Globo journalist.
“I believe that the opportunity to play in the Premier League and join a consolidated team like Liverpool can help him fulfill at least some of the potential he showed at Gremio four or five years ago.”
Balague agrees, although he has concerns about how quickly Arthur can adapt to the pace of the Premier League, which he says is “completely different from Serie A”.
“It didn’t really work at Juventus because Allegri’s system and Allegri’s style just didn’t suit him,” says Balague. “But not only is he 100% physically fit now, he feels he could adapt quickly to the Premier League.
“He reckons Klopp will understand his game much better than Allegri, so the player is really looking forward to coming to Liverpool.”
He joins a successful Brazilian contingent at Anfield that also includes Alisson, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino.
“Arthur has to think faster, see the passes faster and deliver them,” says Balague.
“I’m not sure he’ll have an immediate impact. When he gets under control in a few months you will see someone delivering good balls to the forwards.
“It took a while for Thiago’s football to gain momentum but as we know he had a huge impact. [It is] original thinking from Liverpool to bring him and a good addition to midfield.”
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