According to reports in The Mirror, Liverpool have identified £90m-rated Monaco star Thomas Lemar as the man to replace Philippe Coutinho when the Brazilian eventually leaves Anfield, and he is said to be keen on the move.

What's the word, then?

Well, The Mirror says that it is now a question of when and not if Coutinho will be leaving the Merseyside outfit, with Barcelona reported to be keen on bringing the 25-year-old to the Camp Nou either during the January transfer window or in the summer.

The Mirror says that the Reds want Lemar to replace him, and they have made contact with Monaco to restart negotiations for the player they also wanted in the summer.

The report adds that the 22-year-old is also wanted by Premier League rivals Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United, but the lure of working for Jurgen Klopp and his emerging young team is an attractive proposition.

How has Lemar done this season?

The France international shot on to the scene as he scored 14 goals and provided a further 17 assists in 55 appearances in all competitions for Monaco last term as they won the Ligue 1 title and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, but he has struggled to replicate that form this time out.

The 22-year-old has netted twice and picked up four assists in 18 outings in total, and he has also suffered from hamstring and should injuries during the campaign.

Would he be a good Coutinho replacement?

He certainly would be.

Like the Brazilian, Lemar is capable of playing on the left-hand side or as a central attacking midfielder, and he proved last season the quality and potential that he has.

However, there would be some expectation on him to be as influential as Coutinho has been for Liverpool during his spell on Merseyside, and he would need to step up to the plate to do that – especially given his reported price tag.

Is he really worth £90m?

Probably not, but Virgil van Dijk probably isn't worth £75m either and Liverpool paid that.

Unfortunately that is the going rate these days, and while he may not be worth anything near £90m right now, the potential he has shown could mean that he quickly is if he arrives at Anfield and performs.

That said, while he may be rated at that price the Reds – and their Premier League rivals – would probably be confident that they could bring him to England for a much smaller fee.

https://video.footballfancast.com/video-2015/fm2mc-2018-vvd.mp4