Liverpool’s hopes of signing Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi could potentially be dented, according to a new update from former scout Mick Brown.
Guehi agonisingly missed out on joining the Reds on deadline day, with Palace refusing to allow him to leave because of a lack of a replacement.
While Liverpool still look in a good position to sign the 25-year-old in 2026, Brown has told Football Insider that Chelsea are also in the mix to acquire his signature, among others, in a possible blow for Arne Slot.
“I was surprised Liverpool didn’t have more competition in the summer. So now we’ve got all of these clubs interested in him and planning to make offers to him when he becomes available on a free, and that’s not a shock to anybody. He’s England’s first-choice centre-back and has years of experience in the Premier League, so he would improve whichever side end up getting him.
“Guehi has continuously showed what he can do both for Palace and for England, and it’s no surprise some of these elite clubs have been having a look at him now. It’s a huge bargain if you can get a player of Guehi’s quality on a free transfer. Chelsea are the latest team I’ve heard are looking to make a move because he came through their academy so that could be a bit of an advantage to them.
“The manager wants to improve his defensive options, so of course Guehi is going to be an option, but I expect they’ll have to wait until the end of the season rather than doing it in January. He would be an upgrade on the options they’ve got there at the moment, so it would be more of a surprise if they didn’t try to bring him in, to be honest.”
Will Liverpool still end up signing Guehi in 2026?
Liverpool will hope that as few clubs as possible want to sign Guehi, and while Chelsea re-signing him now looks to be an option, the Reds should still be confident of getting their man.
The England centre-back made it clear that he wanted to join the Premier League champions, and with Slot’s side top of the table after four matches this season, their standing as one of the most exciting clubs in the country to join is unlikely to change any time soon.
Hopefully, an agreement has already been reached the scenes between Liverpool and Palace, in terms of allowing him to move to Anfield in 2026, but even if they haven’t, the Reds still feel like the front-runners to snap him up.
