Former Liverpool midfielder Fabio Carvalho has opened up on his move to Anfield, which saw his game time limited before an exit to join Brentford for big money in August 2024
22:19, 16 Jul 2026
Fabio Carvalho celebrates scoring for Brentford against Chelsea in September 2025.
Fabio Carvalho celebrates scoring for Brentford against Chelsea in September 2025.(Image: Crystal Pix/MB Media/Getty Images)
Former Liverpool midfielder Fabio Carvalho, who moved to Brentford for a fee of around $36 million (£27 million) including add-ons, says he was warned that a move to Anfield might not work out before he agreed to it.
Carvalho struggled for game time under Jurgen Klopp after coming in during the summer of 2022, and was then sold in August 2024 when Arne Slot arrived. Operating mainly as a number 10, he didn't have the pace to play regularly out wide for Liverpool and was best served moving on.
"When I was about to leave for Liverpool, (then Fulham boss) Marco Silva came to talk to me, and I’ve never forgotten his words," Carvalho told the Portuguese outlet A Bola.
"He told me that Liverpool was a great opportunity, but warned that sometimes the grass isn’t always greener. And that stuck with me.
"His honesty and his continued concern for me, showing that he wanted to know about me not only on the pitch. It’s something I value very much."
Carvalho, now 23, has only played 33 times for Brentford so far. He will be hoping to kick on next term having missed most of last season with an ACL injury.
Fabio Carvalho's move to Brentford has not worked out how he would have planned
Fabio Carvalho's move to Brentford has not worked out how he would have planned(Image: Getty Images)
His situation is not that dissimilar to Harvey Elliott at Liverpool now, a player who has been on the edge of the team for a while. He failed to get regular minutes last season at Aston Villa.
Elliott was often used as a substitute under previous Liverpool bosses and it remains to be seen whether he has a future under Andoni Iraola.
But the 23-year-old is not fast enough to play on the wing and has hefty competition through the middle from the likes of Florian Wirtz and Dominik Szoboszlai.
"Harvey is here with us," Iraola said earlier in the week as he held his first Liverpool press conference. "I've seen him with this eagerness to show himself.
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"He will have a chance during pre-season. He came one week earlier and I hope we can see him in a good place.
"Last season had to have been very difficult for him as it was a strange situation that meant they [Aston Villa] couldn't let him play."
Liverpool.com says: Carvalho is a good player, but he needs to get regular minutes. He should, once fit, get those at Brentford, but Liverpool clearly got a very good deal for him.
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As for Elliott, a tough decision awaits. As it stands, the Reds don't have enough players to contemplate letting him go anyway.