five players Liverpool could sign in January

It is no secret that Liverpool are desperate to convince England’s latest young superstar to come to Anfield, and it is understood that they, along with Real Madrid and Manchester City, are among the most serious contenders for Bellingham’s signature.

Nobody within the club is playing down the Reds’ interest, with Klopp speaking publicly about the Borussia Dortmund midfielder prior to Liverpool’s game with Aston Villa. “Just exceptional,” was his verdict.

A January move, to Liverpool or anywhere else, looks unlikely, with Dortmund still in the Champions League and Bellingham keen to leave the club on good terms, but a summer switch is undoubtedly on the cards.

As reported by GOAL, Madrid appear to be at the front of the queue, with the England international interested in a switch to the Bernabeu, but Liverpool still hold out hope that they can convince him to join them instead.

Another midfielder heavily linked has been Fernandez, who was one of the stars of Argentina’s World Cup triumph.

The 21-year-old only joined Benfica last summer, but reports in Portugal suggest he is already ready to make the next step, with Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea – who have been reportedly already offered over £106 million ($128m) – all credited with an interest.

Liverpool sources have, unlike with Bellingham, dismissed suggestions they are close to agreeing a deal, and have even played down the club’s interest, but it looks likely that Fernandez will be on the move before too long.

It’s all about midfielders as far as Liverpool are concerned, with their defence well stocked and Gakpo’s arrival significantly boosting their attacking options.

Caicedo is one that has caught the eye, the Brighton and Ecuador star emerging as one of the up-and-coming players of the Premier League over the past 12 months.

Liverpool scouts have been suitably impressed, and Brighton’s policy of developing players to sell on – see also; Ben White, Yves Bissouma and Marc Cucurella – means they would be confident of getting him out of the Amex Stadium.

The fee, however, could be a stumbling block, with Brighton likely to demand more than £50 million ($60m) for the talented 21-year-old.

The links with World Cup stars keep on coming, with Morocco’s Amrabat another to be heavily tipped for a move to Merseyside.

Amrabat, a specialist midfield destroyer as opposed to some of the all-rounders on this list, plays in Italy with Fiorentina and is valued at around £35m ($42m). At 26, he is approaching his prime and may feel the time has come to make a big move.

Whether Liverpool will be in the market, however, is another matter. With Fabinho very much established as their first-choice No.6, and with teenager Stefan Bajcetic emerging as a player with serious potential, their need for a player of Amrabat’s talents is less than it is for, say, a Bellingham or a Caicedo.

Had Klopp had his way in the summer, RB Leipzig’s Laimer would have been on his way to Anfield.

Liverpool made a move to sign the Austrian in August, only to be informed that Leipzig had no intention of selling, and that Laimer was going to see out the final 12 months of his contract.

The feeling then was that the 25-year-old was going to end up at Bayern Munich, and reports in Germany have since backed that up, but as it stands Laimer has still not confirmed his next move. As a result, he may be available for a cut-price fee in January, though with Leipzig preparing for a Champions League last 16 tie against Manchester City, it seems unlikely that the Germans would be happy to sell.

Maybe a move for a midfielder in a similar contractual situation – Leicester’s Youri Tielemans, AC Milan’s Ismael Bennacer, Dortmund’s Mahmoud Dahoud or Juventus’ Adrien Rabiot – would make more sense?