Less than 48 hours after a crushing defeat in the Champions League final, Liverpool have gone some way to soften the blow.
The aftermath from Kyiv has been dominated by the Loris Karius’ narrative after the German goalkeeper’s horror show.
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Karius visibly heartbroken after the final whistleGetty
But Jurgen Klopp is a proactive manager – and his first summer signing, while not reeking of glam and glitter, might well be their most important in years.
Within the space of a couple of hours reports of a move for Fabinho suddenly materialised into a completed £40m deal.
Liverpool’s new number sixReuters
Signed, sealed and delivered.
In the lanky, athletic Brazilian Liverpool finally have a concrete defensive midfielder who can not only break up play, but dictate it too.
It means, with the imminent arrival of the ludicrously exciting Naby Keita, the Reds’ midfield is set for an almost complete overhaul this summer.
We’ve been blown away all season by the exploits of their front three, with Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane plundering 91 goals between them.
91 goals in one pictureREUTERS
But there’s been a feeling, never more obvious than against the levels displayed by Luka Modric and Toni Kroos on Saturday, that their midfield has its limitations.
Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Georginio Wijnaldum have all hustled and harried as unsung heroes throughout their Champions League campaign.
AFP or licensors Henderson’s game time may be reduced as a result[/caption]
But against Real Liverpool were crying out for a midfielder to put their foot on the ball and impose some authority.
In Fabinho and Keita they have found their solution before the dust from Kyiv has even settled.
Fabinho has won 100+ tackles and been directly involved in 10 goals in each of the last three league seasons:
15/16: 108 tackles; 6 goals, 4 assists
16/17: 113 tackles; 9 goals, 1 assist
17/18: 114 tackles; 7 goals, 3 assists
Added value. 
pic.twitter.com/qSBIzmUIoo
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) May 28, 2018
And given the inevitable grief from Man United supporters for Saturday’s defeat, Liverpool fans might take a semblance of revenge from the deal.
Oh b*******PA:Press Association
Fabinho, after all, has been one of United’s main targets for the last two seasons and he is represented by none other than Jose Mourinho’s agent Jorge Mendes.
That might put a smile back on Reds’ fans faces.
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Getty Images - Getty Can Messi finally achieve glory internationally?[/caption]
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If you’re an existing Dream Team customer the World Cup game now appears in the app or you can enter here, but if you’re not follow these simple steps:
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