Liverpool were linked to several midfielders in the summer but did not make any significant moves after losing out on Aurelien Tchouameni to Real Madrid early in the transfer window.

The club did, however, make a last-minute loan signing to bolster the centre of the pitch on Deadline Day after Jordan Henderson picked up an injury in the early stages of the Premier League campaign.

Arthur Melo joined the Reds from Juventus in a season-long deal with an option to buy the midfielder in the summer for around £32m, however, given the current situation with the player, it's looking highly doubtful that Liverpool will commit to the permanent purchase.

The 26-year-old has made no Premier League appearances and only a 13-minute appearance in the Champions League against Napoli, as well as picking up a thigh injury in training back in October that will leave him sidelined until at least the first months of 2023.

As a result, there is no doubt that Jurgen Klopp and the powers at Anfield will be re-evaluating their approach to the rebuild in midfield, especially with the need for reinforcements becoming even more of a pressing issue as the months pass.

Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will all be out of contract in June 2023 whilst Liverpool captain Henderson and Thiago Alcantara are coming to the latter stages of their career, so some recruitment in the centre of the pitch will be widely welcomed by both the supporters and the manager.

One player who has been linked on many occasions with a move to Merseyside is Inter Milan midfielder Nicolo Barella, someone who could cost €100m (£86m) for any willing suitor.

Pivotally for the Reds, he is already a player the manager admires, with the Italy international receiving huge praise from Klopp.

The German coach hailed Barella in the run-up to Liverpool's Champions League round of 16 clash with Inter Milan last season, saying:

"He is a really good player, a really good player. I like him a lot. He has all the things you want from a midfield player. He’s aggressive, he’s technically [good], he can run for ages and all these kinds of things. So he’s a top-class player."

Over 15 league appearances this season, Barella has scored five goals, delivered five assists and created three chances, as well as averaging 1.4 key passes, 1.2 tackles and won 4.3 duels per game.

Not only that, the Italian star - who was hailed "perfect" by former Liverpool player David Thompson - ranks in the top 10% of his positional peers across Europe's top five leagues for assists, non-penalty goals, shot-creating actions and progressive passes, proving that he is only of the best midfielders in European football right now.

With that being said, it would be a big move if Liverpool reignited their interest in Barella either in January or in the summer transfer window as there is no doubt that he could continue to flourish in the Premier League.