It has been reported this week that Liverpool head coach Arne Slot is expected to be kept on by the club beyond the end of the current season.
The Dutchman has faced criticism for the team's decline on the pitch this season after the Reds won the Premier League title in his first year in charge.
However, £125m signing Alexander Isak has only been fit to play 12 times in the league so far and he recently lost Hugo Ekitike to an Achilles injury.
Liverpool striker Alexander Isak-2
Mohamed Salah, who will leave the club this summer, has also not been as effective as he was last year. The forward scored 34 goals and provided 23 assists in the 2024/25 campaign, yet has racked up 12 goals and nine assists this season.
The upcoming summer window, though, will provide the club with an opportunity to back Slot again and improve the squad to compete for trophies next term.
Liverpool open talks to sign £87m attacker for Arne Slot
With Salah set to move on at the end of the campaign, it is clear for anyone to see that Liverpool need to strengthen their options at the top end of the pitch.
The Egypt international has scored 257 goals and provided 122 assists in 439 games for the Reds in all competitions to date, and it will not be easy to replace his quality in the final third.
Now, according to TEAMtalk, Liverpool have set their sights on a deal to sign RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande in an attempt to replace Salah in the summer transfer window.
The report claims that the club have made contact with the player's representatives to open 'official' transfer talks to sign the Ivorian star in the off-season.
RB Leipzig's Yan Diomande-1
It adds that the Reds have made the forward a priority target and are prepared to pay a fee of up to £87m to secure his services ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
TEAMtalk also reveals that the Premier League giants would like to reach an agreement to bring him over to Anfield before the 2026 World Cup gets underway.
Liverpool can unearth their own Rayan Cherki
Liverpool need to overtake Arsenal and Manchester City to reclaim the Premier League title once again next year, and they could do so by signing their own version of Rayan Cherki in Diomande.
Cherki
Cherki has been a revelation for the Cityzens, after Liverpool reportedly held talks to sign him from Lyon last year, with a return of ten goals and 14 assists in all competitions this season.
The France international plays with a refreshing swagger and level of creativity that feels all too rare in the Premier League at the moment, and Diomande is cut from the same cloth.
Leipzig's wing wizard is a two-footed, pacey, winger who is not afraid to take players on and create moments of magic. Instead of worrying about losing the ball, the 19-year-old star shows courage and tries things that other players won't, just like Cherki.
25/26 Bundesliga Diomande Rank vs wingers
Goals 12 Top 5%
xA 9.16 Top 3%
Big chances created 13 Top 5%
Assists 6 Top 11%
Successful dribbles 102 Top 1%
Dribble success rate 59% Top 12%
Like the Manchester City star, Diomande excels as a goalscorer, a creator, and as a dribbler, as evidenced by his rank among wingers in the Bundesliga in key attacking metrics this season.
The teenage forward, who was described as "electric" by U23 scout Antonio Mango, has completed 39 more dribbles than any other player in the Bundesliga, making him the only star in the division with 100 or more completed.
Yan Diomande for RB Leipzig
Diomande is the kind of maverick that Liverpool have lacked in the Premier League this season, as no player has completed more than 1.4 dribbles per game, and would be a brilliant addition to the side.
The Ivorian can be Slot's own version of Cherki because he can be the wildcard who produces a moment of magic to spark a dull game into life when the rest of the team are not performing at their best.
Rayan-Cherki
His pace, creativity, and goalscoring quality make him a constant threat at the top end of the pitch, despite only being 19, and that is why he would be worth the reported £87m fee for the Reds.
It is now down to the Richard Hughes to get a deal over the line with Leipzig for the Ivorian talent because he could be the dream replacement for Salah, a scorer and a creator of goals, whilst also being the club's own Cherki next season.
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