Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong is being eyed as an alternative to Jude Bellingham by Jurgen Klopp this summer, according to a report.
The Liverpool manager is expected to overhaul his current options in the engine room this summer with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita both set to leave upon the expiration of their contracts, while James Milner's future remains very much up in the air after eight trophy-laden years on Merseyside.
The Borussia Dortmund and England superstar, Bellingham, is unlikely to be making the move to the Reds this summer, however, with Anfield officials deciding to pause their interest in the 19-year-old in favour of adding a string of high-quality additions to Klopp's ranks as Liverpool look set to finish outside of the Champions League places for the first time since 2016.
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According to a new report from Spanish publication Fichajes, De Jong could be a suitable alternative for the Reds as the runaway La Liga leaders look to balance the books once again this summer - with a reported €200 million needing to be shredded from their exponentially growing wage bill.
That could see Liverpool make a play for the 25-year-old, who is viewed as one of the finest technical midfielders on the continent since his rise to prominence with Ajax under manager Erik Ten Hag during their run to the 2019 Champions League semi-final before securing a £65m switch to Barcelona in following summer.
Ten Hag had looked to bring the Dutch international to Old Trafford after being named as manager of Manchester United last summer. However, De Jong decided to stay put in Spain in favour of continuing his career at the Camp Nou despite the willingness of Barcelona to offload the midfield in a bid to sanction deals for Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Marcos Alonso.
United would instead turn to Barcelona's arch-rivals Real Madrid and complete the signing of five-time Champions League winner Casemiro. It remains to be seen whether the Old Trafford outfit would make a second swoop for De Jong should he be placed on the transfer list this summer.
The Ajax academy graduate is the latest midfielder to be linked with a summer switch to Anfield, with Mason Mount, Alexis Mac Allister, Moises Caicedo and Bristol City's Alex Scott all names who have been touted with a big-money move to Merseyside this summer.
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