Liverpool have ‘watched’ 19-goal attacker ‘closely’ who would compete for Firmino’s spot, says James Pearce

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James Pearce has confirmed that Donyell Malen is a player that Liverpool “have watched”.

The Reds are thought to be keeping an eye out for a new forward to bolster Jurgen Klopp’s attacking options.

“He’s certainly a player that has got his admirers at Liverpool. They have watched him closely,” The Athletic journalist told The1892RedsPodcast.

“Certainly at the moment, it hasn’t gone any further than initial enquiries just to check on his situation.

“Certainly at the top end of the field a lot depends on what happens in terms of the exits because at the moment what do you do? You can’t just stockpile players.

“To me, the most obvious thing would be to offload [Divock] Origi and bring in someone like Malen who would be an upgrade and give you that extra injection of quality backup to [Bobby] Firmino – someone who can challenge him for that starting spot.”

Following a disappointing season for the likes of Bobby Firmino and Sadio Mane last term – at least in comparison to the dizzying heights of prior campaigns – the need for a higher quality standard of backup has been highlighted.

READ MORE: ‘Would be the perfect player’ – Wolves frontman can offer Liverpool something ‘different’ to Mane & Salah, says ex-PL star

The purchase of Diogo Jota last summer surprised many close to the club, though it did prove to be another shrewd move, with the Portuguese excelling in a red shirt prior to his injury.

The return of on-loan star Harvey Elliott will likewise offer Klopp another potentially exciting alternative to his prestigious front-three next term, though that still leaves a spot spare.

Realistically, we’d imagine that both Xherdan Shaqiri and Divock Origi will be sold this summer – depending on whether potential suitors are willing to meet our valuation, as Pearce has noted – which would free up the funds to pursue a new attacker of Malen’s quality.

#Ep2 of The Red Nets podcast: EOTK source reveals Liverpool and European heavyweight competing for exciting attacker, exploiting Ligue 1 financial crisis… and more

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