As Liverpool gears up for a big summer, there are several positions that could be strengthened. Right-back, with Trent Alexander-Arnold leaving, is one, while an upgrade on Andy Robertson would also be sensible.
Those two positions might not be the only ones in the backline where players could be targeted, though. At center-back, there might also be a need, even if Joe Gomez is nearing a return and Jarell Quansah is still highly rated.
Dean Huijsen was admired, but he is heading to Real Madrid. Ibrahima Konate will soon have just a year left on his deal and Liverpool will need to tie him down to new terms. And with Virgil van Dijk now under contract until 2027, finding his long-term successor should be a priority sooner rather than later.
This summer, Liverpool, according to Rousing The Kop, could join the race to sign Nathan Zeze from the French side Nantes as an alternative. Bournemouth, meanwhile, has been linked with him as a replacement for Huijsen.
But who is Zeze? The 19-year-old stands at 1.90 meters tall and is under contract for another three seasons after this one. So far during the current campaign, he has played 19 times for Nantes, with 18 of those appearances coming in Ligue 1.
A left-footed French youth international, Zeze is highly-rated in his homeland. He is already a French U21 international and has played a lot of games at senior level relative to his age — a bit like Leny Yoro, who was of interest to Liverpool before he joined Manchester United in the summer of 2023.
(Image: DAMIEN MEYER/AFP via Getty Images)
Liverpool, with Van Dijk and Konate, does not need someone who can come in immediately. But looking to the longer term, it would be useful to have someone with a high ceiling who can learn from the pair before eventually becoming a first-team regular.
Earlier this week, Arne Slot refused to talk about specific transfer targets ahead of the summer when he was asked about them ahead of facing Brighton.
“I think again it’s going to be a boring answer,” he said. “So, for the whole season, it was about the contracts of three players and now we are arriving in a time where everybody wants to know which players we are going to bring in!
“The answer is going to be the same. We don’t talk about the players we want to bring in in public until the moment they have signed for us, and then you can ask me everything about them.”
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“First of all, then you assume that we are going to bring in new players,” Slot said later in the same press conference. “And I’ve said many times already that we, as a club, are very happy with the players we’ve got.
“Part of it is our decision but in some situations players that haven’t played a lot are not looking forward to another season not playing a lot. So, there’s always an ongoing process and we have to make sure that we are prepared if we can strengthen the squad.
“This club has always done that, no matter if we have 19, 20, 21 or 22 players. If we feel we can strengthen the squad, we do so but it’s difficult to strengthen this squad. There’s a reason why we won the league — because we have so many great players.”
Liverpool.com says: If an elite center-back is available, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to bring one in. If not, though, Liverpool will be fine going into next season with the four options that it currently has.
