Liverpool Transfer News: Reds 'monitoring' Forest star amid PSR woes

Liverpool are one of several European giants 'monitoring' Nottingham Forest defender Murillo, as financial issues may force a sale this summer.

Forest were hit with a four-point deduction by the Premier League on Monday after they were found to have breached profit and sustainability rules.

Now in the bottom three, there are fears things could get even worse for Forest, who could need to make sales this summer to avoid further punishment.

According to the Daily Mail, the club are at risk of more financial breaches next season if they don't sell one of their 'top players'.

Along with Murillo, the likes of Morgan Gibbs-White and former Liverpool forward Taiwo Awoniyi are named as possible options to offload.

21-year-old centre back Murillo has impressed since arriving from Corinthians last summer

Along with Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle are named as 'monitoring' the Brazilian, while Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain could also be interested from outside the Premier League.

Signed in the summer of 2023 for a fee rising to €15m, and under contract until 2028, Murillo has made 27 appearances for Forest in all competitions to date.

The report adds that Nuno Espirito Santo's side could expect to make a 'significant' profit from his sale, but doesn't suggest what sort of price tag might be attached to his name.

Liverpool's defensive targets

Liverpool are known to be on the lookout for defensive recruits this summer, with the backline an area of focus even before the arrival of new CEO of football Michael Edwards and incoming sporting director Richard Hughes.

Anfield Watch has reported on the Reds' particular interest in finding a young, left-sided defender, with Goncalo Inacio (Sporting CP) and Piero Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen), as well as Levi Colwill (Chelsea) among the options explored.

Notably, Murillo, who has played in both a back three and four this season, is left-footed.

With Joel Matip's possible exit diminishing options further, it is likely that Liverpool could sign more than one type of defender in the next transfer window.

The likes of Tosin Adarabioyo (Fulham), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace) and Ousmane Diomande (Sporting CP) have also all been regularly linked.