Virgil Van Dijk, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Julian Draxler… Liverpool’s top five transfer targets
Jurgen Klopp will have drawn up a list of names to target, as he hopes to cement a good start to the 2017-18 season so far
WITH January fast approaching, Premier League clubs will already have players in mind to bring in during the transfer window and Liverpool will be no different.
Jurgen Klopp will have drawn up a list of names to target, as he hopes to cement a good start to the season.
The Reds are battling for a top four finish and are into the Champions League knockout stages.
Now, our friends at have identified five players Liverpool will be looking at when the transfer window opens.
Virgil van Dijk
There’s no doubt that Liverpool want Van Dijk, with the Southampton accusing the Reds of making an illegal approach for their defender last summer.
The Dutchman was thought to be set on a move to Anfield.
In the summer he handed in a transfer request saying: “I would like Southampton to consider the interest in me from top clubs should it still exist.
“I have been left frustrated by the club's position that I am not for sale and am disappointed that enquiries from multiple top clubs have been consistently rebuffed.
“I am incredibly ambitious and want to achieve as much as I possibly can to fulfil my potential in what is a very short career as a professional footballer.”
He has since returned to first-team football, but Saints boss Mauricio Pellegrino admitted last month he could leave in January.
“I can’t control the market,” he said. “When we talk about money, everybody has got a price.”
And that will have been music to Liverpool and Klopp’s ears as they look to bring in a defender to sure up their leaky back line.
No other club in the Premier League’s top seven has conceded more goals than the Reds’ 19.
Jean Michael Seri
With Philippe Coutinho still a Barcelona transfer target in January, a midfielder will surely be considered by the Reds, despite Naby Keita’s arrival next summer.
Nice midfielder Seri was close to joining Barcelona in the summer after the Catalan club made on offer of around £35million, but that fell through much to his frustration.
According to the Daily Mail, he’s a Liverpool and Manchester City transfer target, with both clubs sending scouts to watch him so far this season.
The Ivory Coast international is also reportedly open to a move to the Premier League in January too.
He would be perfect for Klopp’s pressing, too, as he’s endlessly harassing and chasing down the man in possession, forcing opposition teams to make errors.
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Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Klopp managed Aubameyang at Borussia Dortmund and the Gabonese striker credits the Liverpool boss as a key influence in his career.
The forward told SunSport last year: “He told me, ‘I know that you young players want everything right away. But you have to learn.’
“I worked hard I training, I stayed behind after training.
"That’s what helped me to shine in the Bundesliga because I scored quite a lot of goals despite some difficult games in the league.
“Klopp gave me strength of character and helped me progress. He’s a charismatic person and I have a lot of respect for this man.”
It’s clear the Dortmund forward respects Klopp, and with Daniel Sturridge possibly on his way out, a new striker could be a January option for Liverpool.
Aubameyang is also open to leaving after a number of disciplinary issues, recently being suspended by Dortmund for turning up late to training.
But Liverpool won’t get a free run at the 28-year-old, he’s also thought to be an Everton transfer target as Sam Allardyce looks to get someone to replace Romelu Lukaku.
Kai Havertz
German under-19 international Havertz is a long-term Liverpool transfer target.
In the summer, Football Whispers revealed the Reds had spoken to Bayer Leverkusen about the availability of the midfielder, who’s been dubbed the next Mesut Ozil.
And in November, Football Whispers also revealed he’d visited Melwood as Liverpool tried to pull out all the stops to sign him.
The 18-year-old has already made 35 appearances in the German top flight, scoring four goals and bagging ten assists.
His standout performance for Leverkusen this season came against Borussia Monchengladbach, which saw him named the best player in the Bundesliga for matchweek nine.
Havertz’s side were losing at half-time, but he provided assists for Sven Bender, Leon Bailey and Julian Brandt in quick succession to completely turn the tie around.
He only signed professional terms with Die Werkself in the summer but is already being tipped for the top.
Leverkusen sporting director Rudi Voller saying: “He has huge potential, which will come to the fore even more in the coming years.”
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Julian Draxler
The signings of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar in the summer pushed Draxler further down the pecking order at Paris Saint-Germain.
That will surely concern the 24-year-old German in a season before a World Cup, where he needs regular football.
Liverpool were interested in the winger before he moved to PSG, and journalist Julian Laurens thinks the Reds could be a viable move as the French side look to balance the books to pass Financial Fair Play.
“Draxler is probably the player with the highest value in that squad along with Angel Di Maria and you could easily see one of them two, plus Lucas Moura, or Hatem Ben Arfa being sold in the winter in January,” Laurens said last month.
“I think Draxler has a lot of clubs that like him, Liverpool for example.”