Transfer: Liverpool to make £30m move for Wolfsburg’s Lacroix
Liverpool are reportedly interested in signing Wolfsburg defender Maxence Lacroix, following the potentially season-ending injury to Joel Matip.
The 23-year-old has been a regular fixture for the German side in the opening months of the 2023-24 term, featuring in 12 Bundesliga games and finding the net against Bayer Leverkusen in October.
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Lacroix joined Wolfsburg from French outfit Sochaux in the summer of 2020 and has since appeared 113 times for Die Wolfe, scoring on four occasions across all competitions.
Given his nationality of French, competition has been fierce for the centre-back to break onto the international stage, with the right-footed defender only managing to play for his nation’s Under-17s during his career to date.
According to The Sun, Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp could be set to accelerate his plans in the upcoming January transfer window due to recent injury issues.
The report claims that the German boss is a huge admirer of Wolfsburg man Lacroix and is hoping to bring the defender to the Premier League and more specifically Anfield in the New Year.
Following Matip’s anterior cruciate ligament injury during the seven-goal thriller with Fulham on Sunday, the Cameroonian could be sidelined for the rest of the campaign.
The Reds are consequently believed to be planning defensive reinforcements in January as a replacement for the former Schalke centre-back, with Lacroix being on a shortlist of options.
It is understood that Wolfsburg are demanding at least £30m for one of their first-choice defenders, with the player’s current deal at VOLKSWAGEN Arena expiring in 18 months.
Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi’s has also been touted as a possible signing for Liverpool during the New Year, although the England international would supposedly set the Reds back by £50m.
Another complication in any potential deal for Guehi is that Roy Hodgson’s side are not interested in offloading the defender during the middle of the season, with a switch more likely in the summer.
It is believed that the 23-year-old has also attracted the attention of Manchester United over the past few months, however the player will reportedly not entertain a potential transfer to Old Trafford.
With Matip’s season hanging in the balance due to his ACL injury, Ibrahima Konate is set to be Virgil van Dijk’s partner in Klopp’s preferred central-defensive pairing until January at least.
The Reds cut the gap to Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal to just two points with a routine victory at bottom side Sheffield United on Wednesday night, and the Merseysiders travel to face Guehi and Crystal Palace at Saturday lunchtime.