OPINION
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp may not feel that he has to sign any more players in this transfer window, but it should be no secret that he needs another centre-back to go with the reliable Virgil Van Dijk.
The Mirror have reported that the Reds’ league rivals Manchester United are on the verge of sealing a £60 million deal for Tottenham centre-back Toby Alderweireld, but he would have been the ideal fit for Liverpool rather than his possible destination of Old Trafford.
Current senior centre-backs at Anfield other than Van Dijk include Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren – but Matip is currently sidelined and Lovren’s future is unclear for the time being.
Alderweireld – who is on £80,000 a week at Spurs (Spotrac) – would have been the perfect partner for the Dutchman, slotting into the central defence like he had always been there.
The Belgian international’s form dipped last season as contract talks took its toll on his performance, with Spurs boss preferring the partnership of Jan Vertonghen and Davinson Sanchez.
However, his presence in the Liverpool defence would have been greatly appreciated by Klopp, as a player with his level of experience and calibre is just what he could do with in order to strengthen that area of the field.
The Reds now look set to see him join their title rivals, and they will be left thinking of what could have been if they registered an interest in him a lot earlier.
Red Devils’ boss Jose Mourinho had targeted Leicester’s Harry Maguire and Barcelona’s Yerry Mina as his two prime defensive targets, and now he has lost out on them, Alderweireld looks to be a last-ditch attempt to improve his central defence.
The fact that United turned their attention onto others indicates that Alderweireld was not as big a priority as they first made him out to be.
He would have thrived alongside Van Dijk, and Liverpool would now be kicking themselves for not moving for him earlier.
