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Football

31st Jan 2021

Liverpool in talks to sign Preston North End defender to ease injury crisis

With no first team centre-backs available for selection, Liverpool need a short term solution at the back and have turned their attention to Ben Davies

Reuben Pinder

Anyone will do

Liverpool are in talks with Preston North End to sign Ben Davies – not that one – according to reports.

With no senior (read: good) centre-backs currently fit for selection, and Fabinho also out through injury, Jurgen Klopp deployed Jordan Henderson at centre-back alongside Nat Phillips for their trip to West Ham on Sunday afternoon – the same partnership that finished their win over Spurs midweek.

Since Virgil Van Dijk and Joe Gomez were both struck by long term knee injuries earlier on this season, Liverpool have had to put out makeshift defences, with Fabinho providing a reliable short term solution. But with Joel Matip’s niggling injury problems, the Reds desperately need another body at the back if they are to have any chance of retaining the Premier League title.

And it seems they have turned their attention to Preston’s Ben Davies, a left-footed 25-year-old. Dominic King of the Daily Mail reports that the deal would cost around £2m and would see Sepp van der Berg go the other way on loan.

Van Dijk can be expected to return in April, according to new reports. But Gomes looks set to miss the rest of the season as well as Euro 2020.