Liverpool are exploring a deal for Crystal Palace‘s Marc Guehi – with indications that he’s keen on the move – and they may still also sign another centre-back.
Since it emerged on Thursday evening that Liverpool were considering a move for Guehi, reporting around the 24-year-old has steadily shifted towards a likely deal.
The onus, as communicated in reports by the Merseyside press on Sunday, is on Palace to accept a reasonable fee for their captain to avoid losing him on a free transfer next summer.
That comes with Palace having already shown their hand with a deal close to sign Sporting CP’s Ousmane Diomande as his replacement.
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Sources including the Times‘ Paul Joyce reported on Sunday that, with Jarell Quansah set to join Bayer Leverkusen for £35 million, Palace’s “asking price will determine whether Liverpool move now or look to sign the player on a free.”
But any move for Guehi looks to be separate to the club’s long-term plans to sign a younger centre-back – as suggested in an update from the Mail‘s Lewis Steele.
Steele wrote: “In addition to their interest in Guehi, Arne Slot‘s team are also looking to sign another player with potential in that position.”
The headline name in that respect is Ajax’s Jorrel Hato, who only turned 19 in March but has already played 111 times for the Dutch club and on six occasions for the Netherlands national team.
Writing on X, Steele added that Virgil van Dijk “has vouched for” Hato and he is “definitely still on the radar” as Liverpool consider an eventual successor to their No. 4.
That Hato has played the majority of his club football at left-back – 69 games in that role and 42 at centre-back – could even allow him to provide cover for Milos Kerkez if both Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas were to leave.
Interestingly, Steele is among those to describe Guehi as a “market opportunity,” which would certainly be the case if rumours prove to be true that Liverpool believe they could sign him for just £30 million.
Bringing in Guehi – a homegrown player – and another defender like Hato – who would not need to be registered as he is under-21 – would certainly help Slot in terms of his squad size for next season’s Premier League.
And with Van Dijk ageing and uncertainty over Ibrahima Konate‘s future, it would be no surprise if Liverpool address the situation decisively with two centre-back signings in one summer.
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