How Liverpool beat Europe to the signing of Fabinho – the early details

In a whirlwind of events this evening, Monaco and Liverpool have both confirmed the transfer of Brazilian defensive midfielder Fabinho for an initial fee believed to be worth €50m plus bonuses that could reach up to €10m.

The deal caught many in the media by surprise, and is thought to have had a similar effect on the many European clubs that had previously been chasing the player.

The initial details are as follows:

Téléfoot report that the only other formal offer on the table for Fabinho so far this summer had come from Atletico Madrid, worth just €35m, and Liverpool’s €50m base fee bid thus blew the Spanish side out of the water.

Fabinho was focused on a transfer away from Monaco before the window came close to starting, with his initial preference having been PSG. However, with the Ligue 1 champions increasingly pessimistic about the likely negative implications of sanctions relating to Financial Fair Play infringements that are due to fall in the coming weeks, Fabinho was convinced to make an early move if possible, a deal that gave Monaco ample time to restructure their squad ahead of the new campaign, thus one away from Paris.

Paris United, the outlet first responsible for breaking Neymar & Kylian Mbappé to PSG, claim that the turning point for Liverpool in the race for Fabinho came in early May in a restaurant in Monaco called “Maya Bay,” where Monaco VP Vadim Vasilyev, Sporting Director Michael Emenalo and agent Jorge Mendes finalised details for the player’s departure and the exact conditions required for a deal to happen.

Manchester United, as reported by RMC last week, were in regular contact with Fabinho’s entourage, but clearly distracted by other potential targets in this position, did not move with in time.

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