Liverpool are likely to bring in new players in the January 2021 transfer market as a solution to the current central defender crisis.
There are at least three players who have been targeted by Liverpool to patch up their back line following injuries to Virgil Van Dijk and Joe Gomez.
First, Dayot Upamecano. The RB Leipzig defender is at the top of the list who can be redeemed for a price of around 40 million Pounds Sterling.
The French defender is also considered to be compatible with Jurgen Klopp’s system and tactics and will have no trouble adapting to other Liverpool players.
In addition, there are a number of other names that the Reds could sign, for example Jonathan Tah from Bayer Leverkusen. Tah is considered ideal to fill the void of Liverpool center-back.
Moreover, The Anfield Genk also tried to sign him in 2016. Now Tah has also been rumored to want to leave Leverkusen after being no longer the main choice under coach Peter Bosz.
Then there is Leicester City defender Caglar Soyuncu. The Turkish defender’s talent has also caught on to Liverpool and could be another alternative to a center-back position.
But it seems difficult for The Foxes to let go of its flagship defender.
Liverpool throughout the first half of this season were hit by a hurricane of defender injuries.
After Van Dijk, Liverpool also lost the injured Joe Gomez. The only experienced defender left is Joel Matip who also suffered an injury.
Klopp could have promoted young academy-trained defenders such as Rhys Williams, Nat Phillips, and Billy Koumetio. However, all three are inexperienced.
The alternative that Klopp has done is to shift his central midfielder to become a defender. As was done to Fabinho in several matches.
Apart from Fabinho, the midfielders that Klopp can conjure up are James Miller, Gini Wijnaldum, and Jordan Henderson. But recently Henderson was also injured after defending the England national team.
