According to reports in the Daily Mail, Liverpool are ready to launch a big-money move for Nice midfielder Jean Michael Seri, but they could face competition for his signature from Premier League rivals Manchester City and Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.

What's the word, then?

Well, the Daily Mail says that the Reds and the Citizens have shown a concrete interest in the Ivory Coast international, who is open to a move to England having failed to secure a transfer away from Nice during the summer.

The Daily Mail says that the 26-year-old was frustrated to see a £35.2m bid from Barcelona rejected, but now some of Europe's biggest teams are circling again.

The report adds that scouts from the Merseyside outfit have watched Seri extensively this season, and they could be prepared to swoop for him either during the January transfer window or at the end of the campaign.

How has Seri done this season?

The Ivorian certainly hasn't been at the same level as last term when he scored seven goals and provided a further nine assists in 39 appearances in all competition from central midfield, but he did miss a month through injury.

The 26-year-old has still netted once and picked up four assists in 17 outings in total though, although he has been featuring in more of a defensive midfield role than perhaps he did in the previous campaign.

Why do Liverpool want him?

It is easy to see why the Reds are keen when you look at his statistics in 34 Ligue 1 appearances last season.

According to Squawka, the Ivory Coast international had an average passing accuracy of 90%, while he created 73 chances for his teammates and provided nine assists.

He also showed his dribbling ability by successfully completing 33 of the 39 take-ons he attempted, while he was also fouled on 42 occasions.

The 26-year-old showed his defensive contribution too by making 28 interceptions and 21 clearances.

Do they need him?

It's difficult to say.

While Liverpool perhaps will need a new defensive midfielder if Emre Can doesn't sign a new contract and if they need an upgrade on Jordan Henderson, the fact that the Reds have already got Naby Keita from RB Leipzig suggests they don't need Seri too.

The duo are both box-to-box players and are quite similar in terms of style and stature, and the Merseyside outfit would probably be better off with a more imposing physical figure in the middle of the park to protect their sometimes leaky defence.

https://video.footballfancast.com/video-2015/soton-liverpool.mp4