Even taking into account the extenuating circumstances of an injury list that would trouble the very best teams, Liverpool have woefully underperformed in the 2020/21 Premier League campaign.
Covid-19 and the associated protocols will also have had a marked effect, albeit every club has to follow the same line.
Once Virgil van Dijk was injured in the first Merseyside derby of the season, questions were quickly asked as to how it might affect the Reds.
A knock-on effect might’ve been expected but as other centre-backs and their replacements began to fall by the wayside, things went from bad to worse.
Jurgen Klopp still had enough talent in his side to be able to cope to a degree, but the loss of confidence, particularly in the latter part of the campaign, could mean that even qualifying for a Champions League place could be beyond them.
Looking ahead, Liverpool therefore appear keen to secure the services of one of European football’s most highly-rated defenders.
TRUE ? @LFC is interested in @kkoulibaly26 pic.twitter.com/DZ2wSHXHvz
— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) March 5, 2021
According to a tweet from Bild’s Head of Football, Christian Falk, the Reds are keen on Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly.
Once rated in the €80-€100m bracket, the centre-back is likely to be available if not at cut-price, then certainly cheaper than previous prices quoted.
It’s believed that Klopp is keen to acquire the player in order to take the pressure off of his towering Dutchman next season.