European club unwilling to sell highly-rated defender in January amid Liverpool and Man United links

Sporting CP have no intentions of selling Liverpool target Goncalo Inacio in January

Goncalo Inacio is a name that must be very familiar with the Portuguese footballing fraternity and it might not be long before Liverpool supporters start chanting his name. That, of course, will happen only if the club manage to sign him.

Yes, the Reds are interested in making a move happen for the Portuguese defender and with good reason. One of the most talented young defenders in the world, the Sporting CP centre-back is making all the right noises in his short career so far.

It is funny to call it a short career when he has already played 129 times

for the Portuguese club at the senior level but in terms of age, Inacio is just 22 and is not even getting started in his footballing career.

When you see Goncalo Inacio play, it is frightening to even think of the ceiling he has and can hit if given the right conditions to develop and thrive. It won’t be long before he becomes a household name.

Being left-footed, he represents a rare breed of centre-backs who are in demand in world football. For some weird reason, teams don’t mind playing a right-footed player as a left centre-back but when you consider the opposite scenario, it’s hardly opted for.

According to the Mirror, despite interest from Liverpool and Manchester United, two Premier League giants, neither the player’s entourage nor the club want to discuss a deal in January. The summer might hold a different story though.

In their quest to revamp the midfield last summer, the Reds were unable to strengthen their defence. The likes of Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate can do the job well enough and we also have Joe Gomez ready to step in, although he has become more of a right-back these days.

Being left-footed, Inacio at Liverpool might be able to open up passing angles when playing out from the back. This is something that Van Dijk cannot do despite all his abilities due to him not naturally being left-footed.

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If we have to wait until the summer, then summer is when we try to sign Inacio. Manchester United have a penchant for signing players from Sporting CP though and we must be wary of them.