Leicester City could sign Schalke 04 defender Ozan Kabak for a significantly reduced fee this summer amid claims that Liverpool have turned down another opportunity to sign the Turkey international.

What's the story?

According to Goal, the Reds have been offered the 21-year-old again for a cut-price fee of £8.5m as the German outfit desperately attempt to raise funds and get one of their top earners off their wage bill.

Kabak has been strongly linked with a move to the Foxes in recent weeks, so Brendan Rodgers' charges could secure themselves a bargain.

The next Wesley Fofana

Liverpool reportedly passed up on the chance to sign Kabak for £18m earlier in the window and aren't expected to change their minds following the arrival of Ibrahima Konate. That means Leicester could be at the front of the queue when it comes to securing the youngster's signature over the coming months.

Kabak enjoyed a relatively successful loan spell at Anfield last season, helping Jurgen Klopp's charges finish third in the Premier League after they suffered an injury crisis.

He achieved a respectable 6.72 WhoScored rating from his nine top-flight appearances and impressed the Liverpool manager during his short time on Merseyside.

"Ozan came in at 20 from Germany, was a big prospect but wasn't lucky with the last two teams he played for; one went down (Stuttgart), and the other will probably go down (Schalke). But nobody really doubted his quality," said Klopp.

However, the German decided to go down a different route this summer, so Rodgers could now take advantage of Kabak's availability.

The former Celtic boss has cultivated an enviable reputation of developing young talent during his managerial career, with Wesley Fofana the latest youthful centre-back to benefit from his guidance.

Since arriving from French outfit Saint-Etienne on a five-year deal nine months ago, the France under-21 international has gone from strength to strength, making 38 appearances for the Midlands outfit and winning the FA Cup along the way.

It's a sign of how well he acquitted himself in his first season at Leicester that he achieved the fifth-highest WhoScored average rating in their entire squad with 7.01, which also made him their best-performing centre-back.

Kabak could be the next beneficiary from Rodgers' tutelage should he make the switch to the King Power Stadium, strengthening Leicester's potential push for Champions League football.

In other news... Leicester could make a huge mistake as transfer claim emerges, fans would be gutted