Liverpool extended their winning run to three matches in the Premier League with a 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on Saturday.
The Reds, however, are still ten points behind league leaders Arsenal in their defence of their Premier League crown, which means that there is still a lot of work to be done for them to retain the title.
One of Arsenal's top performers this season has, of course, been England international Declan Rice, who has scored two goals and provided three assists, per Sofascore, whilst also winning 55% of his duels.
declan rice
The 26-year-old star's consistent performances in the middle of the park, with his play in and out of possession, have helped the Gunners to their place at the top of the table.
Liverpool submit bid to sign new midfielder
Now, the Reds are reportedly looking to bring in a new midfielder who could be Arne Slot's own version of the former West Ham United talent.
According to a report from Spain, Liverpool are pursuing a deal to sign Eduardo Camavinga from Real Madrid ahead of the January transfer window.
The report claims that the Premier League champions have already submitted an offer of £61m in an attempt to land the France international to bolster their options in the middle of the park.
Eduardo-Camavinga-Real-Madrid
However, it adds that Real Madrid do not want to lose the left-footed star ahead of the second half of the season, which makes it an incredibly difficult deal for Liverpool to complete in January.
The Spanish giants view Camavinga as a key player and are not actively looking to cash in on the Frenchman, so the Reds may need to significantly up their offer to secure his services.
Why Liverpool should push to sign Eduardo Camavinga
Slot should push the club to keep trying to sign the Real Madrid star, despite the Spanish team's current stance, because the midfielder could be his own version of Declan Rice.
Camavinga, like the English superstar, is an incredibly well-rounded central midfielder who has the potential to dominate matches in and out of possession.
[FBCharts] Declan Rice Comparisons
Based on their statistics over the past 365 days, as shown in the chart above, both Camavinga and Rice excel in several areas of the game, which shows that they can impact matches in multiple ways, rather than being specialist one-trick ponies.
The France international, who was hailed as a "duel monster" by analyst Raj Chohan, is brilliant in his individual duels, winning 70% of his ground duels in LaLiga so far this season, per Sofascore.
eduardo-camavinga-real-madrid
However, per FBref, Camavinga also ranks within the top 20% of midfielders for progressive passes (6.33) per 90 and the top 4% for successful take-ons (1.93) per 90, which shows that he is also exceptional in possession to go along with his defensive qualities.
Like Rice, the Real Madrid star has won 50% or more of his duels on the ground and in the air, per Sofascore, which could make him an upgrade on Alexis Mac Allister in the middle of the park for Liverpool.
25/26 season Camavinga (LaLiga) Mac Allister (Premier League)
Appearances 12 17
Goals 1 0
xA 0.89 0.82
Tackles + interceptions per game 2.2 1.6
Dribbled past per game 0.6x 0.9x
Ground duel success rate 70% 47%
Aerial duel success rate 56% 42%
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the Argentine midfielder has been a lightweight in the Premier League so far this season, losing the majority of his duels on the deck and in the air.
The former Brighton star has not made up for that with quality on the ball, with no goals and less xA than Camavinga, which suggests that the Frenchman would arrive at Anfield as a much better option in a box-to-box midfield role.
camavinga-real-madrid
These statistics suggest that the Real Madrid midfielder could improve Slot's team by adding more quality in and out of possession in the middle of the park, as a replacement for Mac Allister.
That is why Liverpool should be pushing hard to strike an agreement with Real Madrid for the former Rennes midfielder, because he could be Slot's own Rice and an upgrade on Mac Allister, based on his impressive performances for the Spaniards.
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Liverpool secured another shaky win in the Premier League against bottom-of-the-table Wolves.
It is now down to the club to improve their offer and present the LaLiga giants with a bid that is too good for them to turn down in the January transfer window.