Liverpool appears to be contending with other clubs for the acquisition of Joao Neves, a midfielder from Benfica.

The Reds have yet to strike an agreement regarding any potential new signings. Arne Slot has commenced his new position as head coach and will be preoccupied with the evaluation of the squad in anticipation of the commencement of the Premier League season in August.

Last summer, Liverpool added four new players to their midfield, including Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo, Ryan Gravenberch, and Alexis MacAllister. However, there are now indications that additional acquisitions may be implemented during the summer transfer window.

Liverpool has been linked with the acquisition of Neves this summer. Nevertheless, Manchester United is also reportedly interested in acquiring the 19-year-old.

The Portuguese news outlet Record reports that Man United has had a bid to acquire Neves rejected by Benfica. According to reports, the Primeira Liga club declined an offer valued at €60 million (£51 million).

Benfica is rumoured to be pursuing a fee in excess of €100 million (£85 million) for Neves, with some sources indicating that he has a release clause in his contract worth €120 million (£102 million).

Benfica’s defensive midfielder, Neves, is 19 years old. He began his professional career with the Portuguese giants and has since become their primary No.6 in both the league and Europe.

In December 2022, Benfica manager Roger Schmidt granted the adolescent his senior debut in a 3-0 loss to Braga. Neves has since appeared on 75 occasions for Benfica in the past two seasons, contributing four goals and three assists.

Benfica was compelled to release a statement regarding Neves’ destiny in January. The club reiterated that Neves’ future was in Portugal and denied that it had engaged in negotiations with Manchester United regarding a potential transfer of the midfielder to Old Trafford.

“Benfica denies the existence of any right of preference over its player Joao Neves,” according to the announcement.

“Under no circumstances did Benfica enter into talks with Manchester United or any other club about this player from their formation – nor does it intend to do so –, so any information that points in another direction is false.”