Liverpool are reportedly determined and working hard to persuade LOSC Lille starlet, Leny Yoro, to join the club this summer, as per Graeme Bailey.
The Reds are seemingly keen on signing a new centre-back to replace Joel Matip – who is set to leave the club as a free agent at the end of this month.
It initially looked like the Merseyside club primarily wanted a new left-footed defender as they were linked with several options with Willian Pacho and Goncalo Inacio being among them.
However, it appears Liverpool are also exploring right-footed names with Yoro emerging as a serious target.
Reporting on HITC, Bailey states that Yoro has entered the final year of his current contract and isn’t close to signing an extension with Lille so several clubs are trying to secure his signature by taking advantage of his situation with Liverpool among those to have registered their interest.
However, the 18-year-old is keen on joining Real Madrid and therefore, the Reds are struggling to get this deal done. Liverpool have already started ‘working hard’ to persuade the defender to join and it remains to be seen whether they can eventually manage to lure him to Anfield.
Lille could reportedly accept a fee of around £51m to sell their academy graduate and the fee shouldn’t be an issue for Liverpool to acquire his service.
Yoro is deemed one of the best young defenders in Europe and has been compared to Raphael Varane. The 18-year-old has a similar playing style to the former Real Madrid star, hence he would be a great coup for Liverpool with a view to the long-term future if they purchase him.
However, should Los Blancos decide to make a concrete approach to sign the Frenchman then it is going to be extremely difficult for other suitors to get the deal over the line.
