Liverpool affirm final stance on Andre with January plan now set

Liverpool are now out of the race to sign Fluminense midfielder Andre. The Reds have a new transfer plan in mind.

The Evening Standard reports that Liverpool are now completely out of the transfer race for Fluminense's Andre. The Brazilian is expected to move in the winter window - but it won't be to Anfield.

The Reds were linked strongly with Andre in the summer. Reports suggest they actively enquired with Fluminense about the player, only to be told he wasn't for sale. The club weren't willing to let him go while they still had a shot at winning the Copa Libertadores.

And they were right to think that way. Fluminense did ultimately win the competition for the first time in their history and that has naturally driven Andre's price up.

It's now Fulham who stand in pole position to sign him. Liverpool have pulled out of the race and a £30m offer is on the way from London. Fulham expect to lose Joao Palinha soon, opening a spot for a defensive midfielder.

But the Reds will instead look elsewhere. They're apparently looking at 'defensive targets', which likely means defenders. Andre, after all, is a defence-first midfielder.

There have been plenty of links to such players. Goncalo Inacio stands tall as one player Liverpool reportedly want to bring in next year. There will be others, too, as they prepare for a post-Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip world.

And it seems Andre won't be a part of that. Not to entirely rule out his signing down the line, of course - Liverpool have made a habit of waiting to see how a player does when he moves up a level. It happened with Dominik Szoboszlai this summer, in fact, as they paid a premium to sign a more proven version of the player they initially scouted years ago.

Should Andre move to Fulham and impress, Liverpool may be inclined to sign him down the line. For now, though - or at least January - he reportedly won't be on their agenda.