Liverpool are largely resigned to the fact that a move for Jude Bellingham this summer would be somewhat difficult.
According to James Pearce of The Athletic, it would take a fee beyond £80m to prise the Englishman away from Borussia Dortmund and reports have suggested that the Reds are prepared to exercise patience and wait a year for a potentially ‘perfect fit’.
With only two years set to remain on the teenager’s terms by the point of the next summer window, it should theoretically be more financially feasible to arrange a deal.
Considering that the likes of Thiago Alcantara, Jordan Henderson and James Milner are all in their 30s, there will be increasing pressure for the club to sign a top talent to protect the future of the midfield department.
Knowing Jurgen Klopp and the recruitment team, however, we won’t settle for what’s available now unless a top target can be acquired.
It’s a level of justified stubbornness that could very well see the club follow a similar path to that taken in the patient pursuit of former Southampton ace, Virgil van Dijk, and hold out a year for the potentially seismic addition of Jude Bellingham.