Richard Hughes forced into £35m+ Liverpool transfer after massive update

Liverpool still have a couple of areas within their squad that could do with an upgrade.

The Reds may have spent an extortionate amount of money in the summer on new arrivals but, with the Anfield outfit now fourth in the Premier League table, it's clear that some more upgrades could still be made.

Arne Slot's defence has taken quite a hammering this term and unless something is done about it soon, questions will start to be asked about what lies ahead for the Anfield outfit.

This has caused several rumours to emerge about the the January transfer window with Richard Hughes now likely to be forced into making a move after the latest news that has arisen from L4.

Conor Bradley's injury could force Liverpool into making a move for Marc Guehi

Marc Guehi is someone who has been consistently linked with a Liverpool switch since the summer.

The centre-back was inches away from signing for the club on deadline day but, since Crystal Palace wanted to go into the Europa Conference league with the best squad possible, Steve Parish pulled out of the deal at the last minute.

Since then, the rumours have persisted and although most links have been about a free transfer in June 2026, now that Conor Bradley is out for the season, a move for Guehi may have to be sanctioned in January.

The 2025-26 season was meant to be Bradley's chance to cement himself as the Reds' first-choice right-back, but, more often than not he's been absent from the squad or left on the bench for one of his teammates.

However, now that he's out, Joe Gomez is likely to be the player to fill the gap which means that the Reds will have no backup centre-backs at their disposal.

This is a far from ideal situation, especially since Liverpool are still expected to try and compete for every trophy possible.

Marc Guehi is the exact player Liverpool should be trying to sign this season

Before Guehi's Liverpool switch fell through, most people were describing the £35 million transfer as one of the potential bargains of the window.

Indeed, the fact that his Crystal Palace contract is set to expire in June 2026 played a massive part in the transfer fee being so minimal but for a player of Guehi's quality, £35 million would've been a steal.

The fact that the Englishman is homegrown is yet another reason why he'd be a perfect addition for Liverpool as they already have too many non-homegrown players among their ranks as it is.

He's also got plenty of Premier League experience and with Ibrahima Konate not yet signing an extension to his Anfield stay, it's still unclear who the Reds' centre-back duo is going to be next season.

Although Liverpool's fans won't have wanted Guehi's transfer to occur due to a long-term injury suffered by one of their players, the fact that this could push Hughes into making a move for the centre-back is certainly good news.

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