Richard Hughes should hijack £25m deal, he’s perfect for Liverpool

Liverpool still need to do a lot of work to their team before the summer window slams shut at the end of the month.

Most people thought that the Reds would make a lot of changes to their ranks and, while they've already welcomed three new players, four have left.

And, to make things even worse, Mohamed Salah still hasn't been replaced yet.

Indeed, Rio Ngumoha was used on the right against Newcastle on Sunday but, since he's still only 18 years old, it's a lot of pressure to make him the Reds' first choice for that position.

However, it's not only the Reds' attack that could do with upgrading.

Joel Ordonez is about to join Aston Villa for £25.6 million

Before Ronald Aruajo was signed, Liverpool's defence was in tatters.

Conor Bradley and Joe Gomez are both extremely injury prone which makes them rather unreliable.

Virgil van Dijk is 35 years old and, while he's still Iraola's best defender, he's now entered the final year of his deal which could mean the end of his time at Anfield is approaching.

That's why so many defenders have been linked with a switch this summer.

And now, one of their long-term targets could be taken away from them with one of their Champions League rivals now close to agreeing a deal for Joel Ordonez.

"EXCLUSIVE : Aston Villa emissaries are coming to Club Brugge," Sacha Tavolieri shared via X.

"Blauw&Zwart are expected to welcome their English counterparts in the coming hours to finalise Joel Ordoñez’s move to the Villans.

"Talks are ongoing over a loan with an obligation to buy worth around €30M.

"The key issue to resolve in this deal is how the purchase obligation will be triggered."

Joel Ordonez could help Liverpool out massively this season

Liverpool's defence may have a few new faces among it this season but, there's still room for more to be added.

By trade the Ecuadorian is a centre back but, there have been numerous occasions when he's been used as a number six.

Obviously, he'd probably be used as a centre-back by Iraola but, it would give the Reds the option to use him or Jeremy Jacquet as a number six throughout the campaign.

Both of them have an impressive passing range and each of them can more than hold their own in one-on-one situations.

In the past, Ordonez has been heavily linked with a Liverpool move and, while a deal hasn't come to fruition just yet, now that he's available for around £25.6 million, it feels like a steal.

He's already had a decent chunk of Champions League experience and, since he's only 22 years old, there's still plenty of time for him to grow into an even better player than he already is.

Indeed, it wouldn't help the Reds with their homegrown issues but, for that small of a fee, it feels like Ordonez would be a deal worth Liverpool hijacking.