According to the Portuguese press, Liverpool are one step closer to finally securing the signing of highly rated centre back, Tiago Ilori, and now only need to finally agree on a transfer fee with his club, Sporting CP.

According to A Bola, Sporting are waiting for an offer worth €5 million for the 20 year old, who was born in England but has been part of the Sporting setup since he was 13.

Ilori, known for his ability to play the ball much better than most central defenders, began appearing regularly for Sporting near the end of last season after spending most of it playing for the club’s B team. He has also appeared 15 times for the U-19 team.

It looks like quite a busy time for Liverpool at the moment. They’ve already signed Iago Aspas, and are hoping to add Luis Alberto and Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Shakhtar by the end of the week, while their negotiations for Simon Mignolet of Sunderland, possibly the goalkeeper of the future for the club, are moving forward another step.

Sporting don’t have much choice regarding Ilori. At some point, they’ll be forced to sell him, because the club is in deep financial trouble, as can be seen by their abysmal performances in the league over the last few years, falling way behind Benfica and Porto, as Braga have taken their place (most seasons) as the third member of the Liga Sagres elite.

For Liverpool, Ilori will be the second centre back signing of the offseason following Kolo Toure coming for free from Manchester City. It’s hard to see Ilori becoming a starter right away for the club, even though his technical ability is exactly what Brendan Rodgers is looking for from his players, even if it comes in an nontraditional position.

However, whether Ilori is signed or not, especially if it remains in a low price, won’t stop Liverpool from acquiring a more proven central defender, with Kyriakos Papadopoulos of Schalke on top of their list.