Liverpool's Jude Bellingham alternatives: Mason Mount, Nicolo Barella and the midfielders the Reds should target after calling off pursuit of Borussia Dortmund star

If ever there was an update Liverpool fans didn't want, this was it. For months, the idea of Jude Bellingham arriving at Anfield this summer has provided some comfort for supporters amid the Reds' underwhelming, and at times infuriating, campaign.

Now, though, that comfort has been ripped away. GOAL confirmed on Tuesday that Liverpool are ready to move on from their Bellingham pursuit, deciding that they cannot afford the Borussia Dortmund star when they need a whole clutch of new players this summer to arrest this season's considerable drop in standards.

Jurgen Klopp has spoken publicly of the need for "a big summer", and with the likes of Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all out of contract at the end of the season, it is safe to assume that work is already underway to identify potential summer targets, even if the club's struggle to secure Champions League qualification provides an unwanted obstacle, and distraction, to their plans.

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Bellingham, of course, was the dream, but as Klopp pointed out recently, there are a lot of talented footballers available for a club like Liverpool. And according to sources familiar with the situation at Anfield, there is a long list of potential summer targets, whether they land a top-four finish or not.

With that in mind, GOAL takes a look at some players who could, or indeed should, find themselves on the Reds’ radar…