Liverpool told to pay £80m to sign one of the "best in the world" in his position - report

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Ibrahima Konate has been hugely disappointing all season, barring the odd good performance, while even Virgil van Dijk has looked human in some matches, again being criticised by Wayne Rooney earlier this week: “From a performance level, from what we’ve seen, Van Dijk, I don’t think he’s been at the level he has this season. I said I’m sure as captain he’d be speaking to players, taking the team out for food, which he said he has done.

Clearly if he’s felt he’s done that, he’s had to do that, then there’s something not right.” Giovanni Leoni is a young player still learning his game and is out injured for the rest of the 2025/26 campaign, and there is no guarantee that Joe Gomez will be at Liverpool beyond next summer. Bastoni is an outstanding player who should be coming into the best years of his career, with former Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini heaping praise on him, saying: “I know Alessandro well, he is one of the strongest central defenders around and for me, he is among the best in the world.

He is a player that Italy will be able to count on for many years, he just needs to continue working and maintaining the desire to improve.” Bastoni ticks so many boxes for Liverpool when it comes to their potential centre-back additions, from his age to his quality on the ball – he has completed 90.1% of his passes in the Champions League this season – so this feels like one to keep an eye on. He is also a main contributor for This Is Anfield, one of the world's biggest Reds-related sites, where he writes features and news, and covers matchday content.