[The Athletic] LFC's list of CBs has been gradually whittled down based on 3 key factors — ability, availability & affordability. Inside, they talk about “non-negotiables” in terms of what a player must look like physically, technically and in terms of character and personality

[The Athletic] In November, LFC made initial contact w/ Schalke’s Ozan Kabak. However, it went no further. Sources close to Kabak, valued by Schalke at around €25 million, now expect him to go elsewhere. AC Milan were also interested but deemed the price tag to be excessive.

[The Athletic] Availability in January is certainly an issue. RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano is widely admired but with the clubs set to meet in the Champions League next month, there is little prospect of Leipzig agreeing to sell one of their prized assets in the winter window.

[The Athletic] Anfield officials were baffled by reports about Lile's Sven Botman. The suspicion was that LFC's name was being used to drive up his price. “There’s zero interest in Botman. He’s not even under consideration for the summer window,” one senior club source said.

[The Athletic] It was a similar story with Nicolas Pepe in 2019 when Liverpool were so annoyed by claims they were on the brink of signing him that Edwards personally contacted Lille to make it clear they had no interest in buying him. Pepe subsequently joined Arsenal for £72m.

[The Athletic] Finding someone of the required caliber who is available at a reasonable price in January to enhance Liverpool’s challenge for silverware has proved problematic. There would be a premium to be paid and finance is another important factor.

[The Athletic] Unless an opportunity suddenly presents itself over the coming weeks, Liverpool won’t be buying another centre-back until the summer. By then, availability will be better and there will be more clarity on finances and the expected return of matchday income.

[The Athletic] The impact of the global pandemic continues to cut deep. The cost to Liverpool in terms of the dip in revenues is understood to be in excess of £100 million and still rising in the absence of match-day income.

[The Athletic] Klopp says the prospect of pursuing a stop-gap defensive signing in January to get Liverpool through until the end of the season “makes no sense”.

[The Athletic] When Liverpool’s initial move for Van Dijk collapsed in the summer of 2017 after they were accused by Southampton of making an illegal approach, Klopp ignored the deafening calls to pursue a Plan B. He stuck to his guns and got his man six months later.

[The Athletic] “Short-term fixes aren’t what this club is about anymore,” a source adds.
“It’s not how we arrived where we are. It makes sense to sign a CB we want for 3-4 years, not 4-5 months. And they are not available without being financially irresponsible in this window.”

[The Athletic] During Klopp’s early days at Anfield, he declared that he “preferred training to transfers” and it appears increasingly likely that he will have to come up with answers to Liverpool’s problems internally rather than through an injection of new talent.