Liverpool are still looking for some reinforcements and a centre-back is high up on the agenda.

The Reds have a clear plan this summer.

Identify an area of weakness, find an elite-level target they want and, as proven twice already, buy them.

This may seem simple but Liverpool have been slow operators in recent transfer markets and usually draw up a long list of candidates but never actually get any of them.

Liverpool have perfect £35m blueprint to complete Marc Guehi transfer	Arne Slot can ignore Marc Guehi and save millions by cooking up surprise new centre-back plan - opinion	Marc Guehi has made his feelings on Liverpool transfer clear to friends

The change in approach will be a breath of fresh air to supporters and is a clear statement of intent from owners FSG to stay at the top while being there.

This plan looks set to continue too as a centre-back is the next area that needs a revamp, with Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi a concrete target as he has one year left on his current deal.

The Englishman has proven his ability in the Premier League for many years now and looks ready for the step up, although Liverpool ought to be his preferred destination as he possesses one trait that makes him perfect for Arne Slot’s system.

Photo by Craig Mercer/MB Media/Getty Images

In the modern game, the demands for a full-back are higher than ever before as they have to be equally adept at both defending and attacking.

Liverpool especially have high requirements as they need to bomb forward, whip crosses into the box and sometimes even invert into a midfield role, showing how they really do have to do it all.

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That can leave the centre-backs exposed at points, meaning that the Reds need not only the highest quality options, but players that don’t mind venturing out to the flanks to cover, something Guehi has had to do at Palace for many years.

“One thing I want to say here really is when you’re looking at Guehi and you’re assessing him, he’s largely played on the left side of a back three, so he is a little bit more protected and there are numbers around you to help you defend, making life a little bit easier,” journalist David Lynch said on his YouTube channel.

“But it also means, as he is on the wide sides of that back three that, at times you get pulled to those wide areas to defend, almost like a full-back at times, and we know even though Liverpool play in a back four, they need their centre-halves to do that at times.

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“They push the full-backs on an awful lot, Trent Alexander-Arnold we previously saw him come into the midfield to effect things in the final third, I think that approach is going to continue with Kerkez, Frimpong and Bradley.

“So they are going to ask Guehi to do a lot of that if he does sign for Liverpool, so it is interesting that he is used to that and has shown that already.”

Guehi wants to be guaranteed playing time if he were to move to Liverpool as he wants to ensure he is in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for next year’s World Cup.

However, if he is solely compared statistically, then he would definitely get that at Anfield next summer, and that is even without factoring in injuries to any of the Reds’ current options.

2024/25 Premier League StatsMarc Guehi Virgil van DijkIbrahima KonateChallenges Won286/435 (65.7%)270/364 (74.2%)225/319 (70.5%)Successful Tackles 68/124 (54.8%)54/88 (61.4%)60/99 (60.6%)Defensive Aerial Duels Won41/88 (46.6%)72/95 (75.8%)44/68 (64.7%)Stats from David Lynch’s analysis on his YouTube channel

Although lower in every metric compared to the Liverpool duo, that would be expected given the difference in quality between the two sides, suggesting Guehi would be much nearer to them if he was at the Reds last season.

Aerially he is significantly worse but with Virgil van Dijk so superior in this stat across the whole of the division, perhaps a more ball-playing partner is what Slot desires.

Guehi is definitely capable of doing that and is comfortable using both feet, again highlighting how he has all the characteristics needed to make the cut for the Premier League champions.