It's back on! Liverpool to reignite deal for target they missed in January

Liverpool were facing down a defensive crisis in January.

Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni are long-term absentees due to injury while the fitness of Jeremie Frimpong and Joe Gomez cannot always be relied upon.

The load was therefore heavy on Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate at the heart of defence with Dominik Szoboszlai also pressed into action at right back.

Those difficulties led Arne Slot and Richard Hughes to attempt to find a solution in the transfer market. Owing to a shortage of senior centre-backs and right-backs cover was required in those positions.

And one player who could fulfil both functions is Lutsharel Geertruida.

Liverpool miseed January deal for Geertruida

The 25-year-old captained Slot’s Feyenoord team before moving on to RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga. However the Netherlands international has had difficulty settling in Germany and moved on loan to Sunderland last summer.

And Liverpool tried to step in with a deal for the versatile defender - an attempt which fell down over the complexity of the arrangement. Geertruida stayed at the Stadium of Light but his future remains very much up in the air.

Fussballdaten in Germany claims Sunderland can sign him for €20m in summer but also adds a line in its report about Liverpool’s interest in the utility man.

Geertruida available in summer

“The Dutchman is a key performer for Sunderland and has established himself in the Premier League,” the report reads.

“The club has the option to sign him permanently for around €20 million.

“Nothing has been officially decided, but Liverpool's previous interest suggests that Geertruida remains in demand on the international market – his participation in the upcoming World Cup could further increase his value.”

Therefore it cannot be discounted that Slot and Hughes will make another play for Geertruida once the window opens.

With Ibrahima Konate leaving - and Joe Gomez’s future also under threat - Liverpool could do with a multifaceted option like Geertruida to help them out in a bind.

This is clearly a player already sanctioned and approved by Liverpool’s head coach and sporting director - meaning a deal for Geertruida is once again one to watch heading into the off-season.

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