Julian Ward sets sights on £33m Liverpool deal for Porto midfielder once passed up by Wolves for half the price

Liverpool are reportedly lurking with intent amid claims they are strongly considering a summer transfer window approach to sign former Wolves loanee Vitinha.

The Merseyside giants are preparing for a changing of the guard behind the scenes this summer. The decade-long success of sporting director Michael Edwards will come to an end on June 30 when the popular transfer guru departs Anfield. He will be replaced at the helm by his No 2 Julian Ward, who takes up the senior role on July 1.

With time ticking on Edwards’ reign, he was one major job still to play: tying Mohamed Salah down to a new deal. That said, pundit Ally McCoist has told TEAMtalk in an exclusive interview why he expects the Egyptian to depart.

Ward, meanwhile, is turning his attentions towards future signings at Liverpool.

To that end, the Reds were linked with a surprising move for Ajax striker Sebastien Haller earlier this week.

However, Liverpool are also likely to be paying close attention to their midfield areas too.

Ongoing doubts over Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain continue to surface. Meanwhile, James Milner’s Peter Pan-like abilities are starting to fade with questions emerging over how long he will play on for.

A plethora of names have been linked with the Reds. Indeed, the likes of England pair Jude Bellingham and Kalvin Phillips are both reportedly on their radar.

Both players, however, would likely cost well in excess of £50m – and it seems there are cheaper options out there.

Now according to Portuguese newspaper Record, Liverpool are looking at Porto star Vetinha.

The Reds are no strangers to raiding Porto of late, having brought in Luis Diaz in January. They are also on the trail of another Portugal-born youngster in Fabio Carvalho.