If – or should we say ‘when’ – Raheem Sterling’s move to Manchester City goes through, the Liverpool hierarchy are going to be left in an intriguing situation – do we pump all of the cash into signing a marquee forward, do we spread it around the entire squad, or do we try and find a like-for-like replacement for the man we’ve lost?
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The addition of a striker is simply a must for us this summer, but if we were to get the full £50m transfer fee that we are reportedly demanding for our young forward (via The Telegraph), then we’re going to have some cash to play with.
It’s plausible that we’d reinvest the majority of it in a striker and then look to pick up another player to fill the void left by Sterling’s departure. Despite our squad boasting the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino and Adam Lallana, our squad is a touch short on natural width and pace out wide.
Any of these ten players could help replace Sterling and should be available at an affordable price. How many of them would you be happy to see wearing the Liverpool red in the future?
10) Lucas Andersen (Ajax)
One for the future this. The 20-year-old, who is already a two-time Danish international, is the latest talent off the Ajax conveyor-belt. He scored four goals in 37 appearances last season and is also capable of playing centrally.
9) Paul-Georges Ntep (Rennes)
A blast from the past… or so it feels. Back in May he was supposedly almost a Liverpool player (via the Metro), only for the rumours to be proved false. The 22-year-old won his first two caps for France earlier this year.
8) Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kyiv)
The 25-year-old Ukrainian has so far remained loyal to his only professional club, who he joined back in 2007. He’s scored an incredibly impressive 68 goals in 172 league games in that time, but would he take to England?
7) Jesus Manuel Corona (FC Twente)
Corona was one of the stars of Mexico’s Copa America campaign, despite them being eliminated in the early stages. According to reports in the country, Manchester City have already expressed an interest in his services.
6) Denis Cheryshev (Real Madrid)
The Russian has never played for Madrid’s first-team, although he has enjoyed plenty of success with the reserves down the years. He went on loan to Villarreal last season and scored seven goals in 40 appearances.
5) Yannick Ferreira Carrasco (AS Monaco)
Another youngster, still only 21, who looks to have a highly promising career ahead of him. He has three caps under his belt for Belgium and scored eight goals in 52 games for Monaco last year, helping them finish third.
4) Kevin Volland (Hoffenheim)
How ironic would it be if we pinched another of the German club’s mercurial talents. The former teammate of Roberto Firmino was almost equally impressive last season, scoring ten goals in 34 appearances.
3) Iker Muniain (Athletic Bilbao)
This talented 22-year-old already has close to 200 games of La Liga experience under his belt and arguably need a move such as this to help him fulfil his vast potential. He won his one and so far only cap for Spain back in 2012.
2) Heung-Min Son (Bayer Leverkusen)
The South Korean has scored 21 goals in his first 61 league games for Leverkusen, who he joined two years ago, and that’s despite playing predominately as a wide player. Still only 22 and one of Asia’s most exciting talents.
1) Pedro (Barcelona)
The victim of Luis Suarez’s arrival at Barcelona, with the former Liverpool man joining Lionel Messi and Neymar in a star-studded attack. The Spaniard signed a new contract this year but might still be tempted (via the Echo).
