Arne Slot has found his next Dean Huijsen in 'incredible' star

Dean Huijsen was Liverpool's top defensive target last summer.

The Reds were going head-to-head for his transfer with the Spaniard eventually choosing to make a return to his home country and play for Los Blancos.

Since then, the former Bournemouth man has been a regular feature for Real Madrid and Liverpool have managed to sign a different young centre-back in Jeremy Jacquet.

At the moment, nobody knows what Liverpool's defence could end up looking like next season with Andy Robertson leaving and Ibrahima Konate's contract set to expire.

This has caused many transfer links to emerge and now, it feels like Arne Slot may have found his replacement for Huijsen after missing out on him last time around.

Jan Paul Van Hecke is on Liverpool's shortlist again

Jan Paul Van Hecke has been one of Brighton's best defenders this season.

The 25-year-old has solidified his place in Fabian Hurzeler's back line and has quickly become one of the Netherlands' next big talents.

Which, now that Virgil van Dijk is getting into the twilight stages of his career, could be massive for his home country.

These performances seemingly haven't gone unnoticed with Dutch outlet Voetbal International claiming that the centre-back is refusing to sign a new deal with the Seagulls.

"Jan Paul van Hecke (25) is a major candidate to strengthen Liverpool this summer," they wrote.

"Multiple sources confirmed to VI that both parties are in contact."

Jan Paul Van Hecke could be Liverpool's new Dean Huijsen

Even though Van Hecke may be four years older than Huijsen, both players still have a pretty high ceiling.

Liverpool's main goal with transfers over the last couple of years has been to sign young players who are good enough for the first-team but could become even better.

They managed to do this with the likes of Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz last summer and could look to do the same again.

And, at 25 years old, Van Hecke may be a tad older than their usual targets but the fact he could fit straight into Slot's plans and start challenging for a starting role is massive.

The Dutchman has a similar playing style to Huijsen and, since he's already had bags of Premier League experience, the adjustment period for him wouldn't be too hard.

Van Hecke is also worth around £50 million which is exactly what they were going to spend on the Spaniard last summer.

Indeed, the fact that Giovanni Leoni and Jacquet will be available as options could push the Reds away from signing the Dutchman but, in reality, the 'incredible' centre-back is exactly the type of player they need to get back to the top.

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