Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes has reportedly compiled a five-player shortlist for the club’s ‘number one priority’ position in the January transfer window.
The Reds attacked the summer market with intent as they invested almost £450m in new signings, but many of those have yet to have the desired effect as Arne Slot’s side plunged into the bottom half of the Premier League table last weekend.
Despite the aggressive recruitment drive earlier this year, the Merseysiders have been operating with only three senior centre-backs due to the sickening ACL injury to Giovanni Leoni in September, with depth in that part of the squad looking rather threadbare.
Liverpool draw up five-man centre-back shortlist
According to sources for CaughtOffside, the addition of a ‘top-level centre-back’ in the winter is Liverpool’s ‘number one priority’, and the recruitment team (led by Hughes) has come up with a five-player shortlist of prospective targets.
Marc Guehi of Crystal Palace is understood to be the ‘frontrunner’, with the Reds having seen a deadline day move for him collapse at the end of the summer window.
Marc Guehi is reportedly Liverpool's preferred centre-back target for the January transfer window
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Borussia Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck is also a ‘compelling option’, and it’s noted that the Bundesliga club could be willing to negotiate if a ‘substantial bid’ is tabled.
Portuguese duo Antonio Silva (Benfica) and Goncalo Inacio (Sporting Lisbon) are named as strong candidates, while Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano has ‘entered the discussion as a possible opportunistic signing’ as his contract in Bavaria expires next summer.
Who’d be the ideal centre-back signing for Liverpool in January?
There’s no questioning that Liverpool need to bring in another centre-back in January, but of the shortlisted quintet, which would appear to be the most desirable option?
Guehi stands out given his proven experience in the Premier League, age profile (25), homegrown status and the possibility of a cut-price transfer as he has just seven months remaining on his current contract.
Having come so close to signing him at the end of the summer, Hughes might feel he has unfinished business (literally) regarding the Palace defender and go back with a renewed determination to finally get his man.
Nico Schlotterbeck is included on a five-man centre-back shortlist for Liverpool in the January transfer window
(Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
If the Eagles captain proves to be unattainable in January, Schlotterbeck would be well worth pursuing. As we’ve explored previously, the Dortmund colossus has some of the best underlying performance figures of anyone in his position in Europe, and at 25 he’s also in that ideal cross-section of boasting plenty of high-level experience while only coming into his prime now.
Silva and Inacio are even younger at 22 and 24 respectively and could represent sound long-term investments, although the step up from the Portuguese top flight to the Premier League would be substantial, and their respective clubs know how to command extortionate transfer fees.
Upamecano on a free transfer might seem attractive, but Liverpool could also sign a proven Premier League operator in Guehi for nothing in 2026, albeit that they’d have to wait until the summer to do so.
Hughes doesn’t have that luxury – given the Reds’ dreadful form on the pitch and the lack of centre-back depth, it’s essential that the position is addressed in January when we’re getting the chance.