Liverpool have £35m blueprint to wrap up transfer of defender

MARC GUEHI is a player of interest to Liverpool as the Reds weigh up their centre-back options ahead of Jarell Quansah’s exit from the club.

- By THEO SQUIRES

The England Under-21s international, who is currently representing the young Lions at the European Championships, is set to complete a £35m move to Bayer Leverkusen following the conclusion of the tournament.

His exit will leave Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez as Liverpool's only senior centre-back options to partner Virgil van Dijk, though midfielder Wataru Endo is also an option in defence if required.

The Reds remain on the lookout for a new young centre-back with high potential, having previously missed out on Levi Colwill, Leny Yoro and Dean Huijsen.

But they are willing to be patient in pursuit of the right defender, even if that means not recruiting such a player this summer.

However, Liverpool are also known to be monitoring Crystal Palace captain Guehi, with an expiring contract presenting an attractive opportunity.

Newcastle United had as many as four bids rejected for the defender last summer, with the highest totalling £65m.

But now inside the final year of his contract, the Eagles will unlikely be able to demand such a high fee.