Liverpool ‘made contact’ with Sokratis but a deal is unlikely

Contact was made with Sokratis but he looks set for a return to his homeland

And so here we are. Little over a week to go in the January transfer window and, despite it being patently obvious that Liverpool's chances of success probably hinge on having an extra fully fit defender or two, Jurgen Klopp's side appear no closer to any additions. While it still looks very, very unlikely they will bring in any new defenders in the next seven days, perhaps - or perhaps not - the news they have been in contact with a currently available centre-half will be seen as a positive. Sokratis Papastathopoulos is a free agent after reaching an agreement with Arsenal to be released earlier in the month. Though the Premier League champions are hoping to get by until summer without bringing in defensive reinforcements, David Ornstein writes in The Athletic that contact was made with the Greek during last week. The 32-year-old was signed for Borussia Dortmund by Klopp in 2013. Though he would offer experience, he has yet to play a competitive game of football since August. While it could be argued that this might still be a better alternative to fielding inexperienced youngsters, the report claims things have not progressed since initial contact was made. Instead of a move to Anfield, he is expected to finalise a switch to Olympiakos instead. Liverpool's reasons for not pursuing the move any further may offer a glimmer of hope. Maybe - just maybe - it means something else is in the offing.