It's on! Liverpool's dream choice to sign Hugo Ekitike back-up is ready to move

Liverpool's summer preparations are now going to be further complicated by the fact that Hugo Ekitike is expected to miss close to nine months due to an injury.

Losing the Frenchman on Tuesday night was undoubtedly the worst and most distressing part of the night - even more so than the 2-0 defeat.

Sure, any other time when Liverpool are eliminated from the Champions League, it's devastating. But we all knew it was inevitable.

This side under Arne Slot are simply not a force to be reckoned with, PSG showed their might with a comfortable 4-0 victory over two legs.

But losing Ekitike, who has probably been Liverpool's best signing of the summer, and who is the face of this exciting new team is just a massive blow.

Especially, when you consider that Liverpool won't just be losing him for the rest of the season, given the nature of an achilles rupture, Liverpool may not see him play again until 2027, and the thought of that is horrendous.

It means that as well as having to replace Luis Diaz and Mo Salah, Hughes is now going to have to find a temporary solution to the Ekitike problem.

Liverpool cannot be relying on Alexander Isak as the sole striker. They need another no.9 and the back-up options just aren't there.

Federico Chiesa is likely going to leave this summer.

Jayden Danns could be an excellent choice, however, he is so injury prone and simply cannot be trusted.

So, enter the market Liverpool must and there is an obvious choice for who they should go for. A striker with an excellent track record, who is still very young and who has proven himself at one of the biggest clubs in the world.

Crucially, the door is open for him to leave this summer.

The Athletic reports that Gonzalo Garcia is expected to leave Real Madrid this summer and he is ready for a new challenge, and this opens up the prospect of Liverpool pursuing a move for the Spaniard.

Garcia is only 22-years-old, he has been playing as a back-up for Madrid over the last year or so and has scored hat-tricks in La Liga and important goals in major competitions.

In total he has averaged 0.79 goal contributions per 90 minutes in a back-up role, which is extremely impressive. On top of that he also has six goals in seven games for Spain's U21 side.

Having him as the extra competition behind Isak is the dream choice. He's such a proven player and still young, who could be moulded into anything.

If Liverpool are smart about this, they will make a play for him this summer. The move is on. Garcia is clearly ready to move and Anfield is the perfect destination for him.

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