Real Betis are facing a defensive midfield crisis, with injuries to William Carvalho, Marc Roca and Johnny Cardoso. This means that Manuel Pellegrini only has Sergi Altimira as a senior option currently available to him. It's thought that the position will be looked at during the winter transfer window.

Club bosses might look to do this with a short-term loan, and a good option that has been linked in recent days is former Barcelona star Arthur Melo. It looks like they'll have to wait until the summer to sign an expensive player, but if the expected sale of Cardoso goes through, they should have money to spend.

If so, one of the targets is likely to be Richard Rios. According to ED, the 24-year-old Colombian midfielder is a favourite of Betis' sporting department, but Palmeiras are likely to want more than €20m for him.

Rios would be a great replacement for Cardoso if he does leave, but it's unlikely that the former could join unless that happens, given that Betis' financial situation isn't the strongest.