Liverpool's most salient area for reinforcing on the transfer front is unequivocally the centre of the park, but that does not mean the club won't target the offensive front if the right, enticing opportunity comes along.
And according to reports stemming from Italy (via the Liverpool Echo), MLS outfit Chicago Fire's prodigious forward talent Jhon Duran has caught the attention of Reds boss Jurgen Klopp, who is making a 'concrete' move for the player with the January market recently swinging its doors open.
The teenager has scarcely tasted senior action, but has already impressed in his first year with a clinical edge and fearsome physicality that could pave the foundation for an exemplary career as a striking phenomenon.
A fee of roughly $21m (£17.5m), could be enough to prise him away from Fire's clutches, as per Calciomercato, and although the asking price might appear steep for an unknown commodity on European soil, his dynamic skill set would be a welcome tool for any top outfit chasing success...
Calciomercato reporter Raffaele Amato tweeted this about the situation: “Liverpool are also making concrete moves for Duran, but the current offer is lower than Benfica’s. The biggest pitfall for the Portuguese is represented by Aston Villa. Chicago are aiming to collect 20 million euros.”
Next Suarez
At only 19-years-old, Duran has bagged eight goals and five assists from only 14 starts across the 2022 MLS campaign in a breakthrough year where the Colombian phenom has emerged onto the American scene in resounding fashion.
The three-cap gem was at the centre of heaped praise from talent scout Jacek Kulig when he was still only 18-years-old, regarded as a "complete" centre-forward, "fast, powerful & confident with the ball at his feet", and "aggressive & determined in the penalty area."
His all-encompassing aura on the pitch, despite his tender age, could pay dividends for Klopp as he looks to turn the page on a new chapter at Anfield, and bring the club a talisman for the coming years that could emulate the success of coveted centre-forward Luis Suarez, someone who like Duran, was very much an aggressive and complete attacker.
Suarez signed for the Reds from AFC Ajax in 2012 for a fee of £22.7m, and he went on to forge one of the most devastating careers in Premier League history, captivating fans and pundits alike with his blistering arsenal and innate knack to find the back of the net from every distance and angle, scoring 69 goals and 39 assists over just 110 Premier League outings.
The "wonderkid" - as heralded by Tom Bogert - is still very much untested on the biggest stage, but he certainly holds the ingredients to serve up a concoction of striking excellence, and with a cutting edge already apparent from his little time spent in the MLS, he could nurture his precocious abilities at one of the world's most prominent outfits.
His impressive Sofascore rating of 6.91 is a testament to his tenacity and all-encompassing approach to his game, and with 2.2 shots per match, his peppering output is certainly reminiscent to a former phenom in Liverpool red who took the nation by storm.