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Liverpool FC are closing in on the signing of Charlton youngster Joe Gomez, with a deal set to be completed early next week.

And the Reds look to have beaten off competition from a host of top clubs, both at home and abroad, to secure the 18-year-old’s signature.

The ECHO reported Liverpool’s interest in Gomez earlier this week, and can reveal that negotiations are now at an advanced stage, and that the deal is expected to be finalised in the coming days.

A fee for the England U19 defender is yet to be agreed with Charlton, but discussions are ongoing. Liverpool had hoped to get Gomez for an initial price of £3.5m, but the transfer is expected to now go through at closer to £6m. The deal will also contain a number of performance-related add-ons.

The prospect of an immediate loan back to Charlton, or another Championship club, has been mentioned but Gomez is confident he can prove himself worthy of Liverpool’s senior squad during pre-season at Anfield.

Crucially, the player himself is desperate to join Liverpool, and is already preparing for the move to Merseyside. He believes Anfield, under Brendan Rodgers, is the perfect place for him to develop as a player in the coming years, and is backing his ability to play his way into the Reds’ first team.

His decision is set to leave a number of high-profile clubs disappointed. A host of Premier League teams, including Manchester City, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Newcastle and newly-promoted Bournemouth, were all keen to sign Gomez, while there was also interest from Germany, with both Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim making offers.

Liverpool, though, are the Londoner’s preferred choice. The Reds have tracked Gomez extensively over the past three years, with Dave Fallows, the head of recruitment, and Barry Hunter, the chief scout, key players in the deal. Rodgers has also received glowing reports from Sean O’Driscoll, who has coached Gomez with England’s U19 side.

A tall, pacy defender who can play as a right back or centre back, Gomez enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at Charlton this season, making a total of 24 appearances for the Championship outfit.

He was part of the England side which won the European U17 Championships last summer, and was named in the team of the tournament in the process. His performances in Malta earned him comparisons with former England star Rio Ferdinand, whom Gomez counts as a boyhood idol.

"I always looked up to Ferdinand when I was younger because he was an English centre-back at the top level - plus he was a ball-playing one too," Gomez said back in December.

Catford-raised, Gomez joined Charlton as a 10-year-old, having initially been rejected following a two-week trial.

He progressed swiftly through the ranks at The Valley, playing for the Addicks' U18 side at the age of 14, and was given his senior debut by former boss Bob Peeters in a Capital One Cup tie against Colchester United last August.

Liverpool FC Joe Gomez Q&A: Charlton kid is "a ball-playing defender" in the Rio Ferdinand mould