Liverpool identify centre-back target after Giovanni Leoni injury blow as Reds consider alternative to Borussia Dortmund star Nico Schlotterbeck

While there was a huge sense of relief that captain Virgil van Dijk signed a new two-year deal with Liverpool earlier this year, Arne Slot's team are not blessed with centre-back options. Ibrahima Konate has yet to sign a new deal, with his current terms set to expire in 2026 amid links with Real Madrid. In mid-August, the Merseyside outfit forked out around £30 million ($41m) on teenage Parma talent Leoni as a potential star of the future. This season would have been about bedding in the youngster and giving him game time here and there, while still being behind Van Dijk and Konate in the pecking order. But just over a month after his Anfield switch, the Italy Under-19 international suffered a serious injury against Southampton in the Carabao Cup, meaning Liverpool were somewhat short defensively. 

Soon after the injury in late September, Slot told reporters: "He is not in a good place, of course, because he tore his ACL and it means he will be out for a year. Being so young and coming to a new country and playing so well in your first game... it's very hard to take the positive side. There's never a positive side - but you always try to look at a positive side and that is that he is still so young, so he has so many years still to go after he recovers from a terrible injury like that."

Their inability to sign Crystal Palace ace Marc Guehi seemed to be coming back to bite them here. 

In October, Liverpool were linked with 25-year-old Dortmund talisman Schlotterbeck, with an eye as a possible replacement for Konate, should he leave for pastures new. The 22-time capped German international has impressed in the Bundesliga and his performances is said to have attracted admiring glances from the Premier League and La Liga. But it seems the Reds will not be pursuing the 6ft 3in defender, who is so far reluctant to sign a new deal at the German giants.

On that topic, he said in October: "BVB will be my first point of contact, and then we'll have to see how the next few months go. It makes a difference whether you're in 11th place in March or playing in the Champions League again. All I can say is: I feel good."

According to DaveOCKOP, Liverpool are keeping tabs on Sporting CP defender Ousmane Diomande. The report adds that Crystal Palace pursued the 21-year-old for much of the summer as a potential Guehi replacement but with the England international staying put, that chase was put on hold. The Eagles entered 'advanced' negotiations with Sporting over a deal between £40-50m ($53-66m) for the Ivory Coast international but the Reds' interest is not as 'aggressive'. In fact, DaveOCKOP claims Schlotterbeck is more of an 'ideal' option for Slot. 

In the meantime, Liverpool are hoping that Van Dijk and Konate stay fit, although Joe Gomez is a backup option should they be sidelined. Slot's team spent hundreds of millions this summer on big-money signings such as Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak but it seems it was a mistake not to strengthen their defence as that part of the field has looked shaky - not helped by an injury to goalkeeper Allison. The defending Premier League champions are already seven points behind table-toppers Arsenal after just 10 games and next up they travel to a rejuvenated Manchester City side at the Etihad on Sunday. If they lose that, and Arsenal win this weekend, they could be kissing their title defence goodbye already.