Will Liverpool sign a new centre-back? Klopp admits he doesn’t know

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 17 May 2021 20:59 BST
• 2 min read

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has admitted to not knowing if the club will sign a new centre-back in January to aid their current injury crisis.

At the moment, first-choice centre-backs Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez are long-term absentees, while Joel Matip has also been in and out of the team with injury recently.

• How Haaland has helped move Kane up Man Utd and Chelsea’s shopping list

Fabinho continues to impressively deputise in defence, with youngsters Rhys Williams and Nathaniel Phillips also being relied upon for minutes.

Even before the injuries to Van Dijk and Gomez, Liverpool were linked with a move for a new defender in the summer or in January, with RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano and Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly the most high profile names reportedly on their shortlist.

When asked whether the Reds will step up their efforts to bring someone in now that the transfer window is open, Klopp told reporters he was unsure.

“We have solutions in the squad obviously but we struggled still with injuries,” the German said.

“For most of the time with centre-half position, it can happen like this – when it starts, it does not stop.

“We have solutions with the squad but if we can do something in the window, I don’t know. It is like that.

“It is a very difficult transfer window, as you can imagine. Not all of the clubs have real money. Just doing something makes no sense. Doing the right thing makes sense. So far, we have really liked what we have done.”

In terms of Liverpool exits, Klopp leapt to the defence of Mohamed Salah on Sunday, looking to clarify comments the Egyptian made about potentially moving to Barcelona or Real Madrid in the future.