Slot's wide of the Marc if he thinks Kop don't need Guehi

LIVERPOOL have intimated they will not be moving for Marc Guehi in January-but following a defensive horror show against Crystal Palace, it is hard to envisage anybody believing them.

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The England international did not require a stormer to reaffirm what was already obvious - the Premier League champions missed a trick when failing to land the 25-year-old central defender this summer.

Steve Parish eventually answered Oliver Glasner's prayers and pulled the plug on the £35million transfer at the eleventh hour on deadline day but had Liverpool put the magic number - £40m - on the table earlier in the window, Guehi undoubtedly would have been returning to Selhurst Park for the first time as an away player yesterday.

The great irony of it all is that there is genuinely a strong argument Arne Slot's Liver Birds, who had their wings clipped in south east London following Eddie Nketiah's last-gasp winner, actually needed Guehi's defensive qualities more than Alexander Isak's attacking firepower.