Liverpool told what it will take to sign 'outstanding' star from arch-rivals

Liverpool are currently sixth in the Premier League.

This means that, at the moment, they're sitting outside of the Champions League spots which is far from ideal.

Last term, Arne Slot led his men to a fifth-place finish and, in a normal campaign, qualifying for Europe's premium competition would have been the bare minimum but, just a season after winning the Premier League title, fans wanted to see their team at least try and defend it.

This obviously didn't end up happening which is why Slot was relieved of his duties and why Liverpool had to spend another £150 million on new players.

Andoni Iraola was the man chosen to take over and, while his impact on the squad has been fairly impressive, more can come from the Anfield outfit.

And, at the moment, fans need more so that they know that their club are going to be able to handle themselves by the end of the term.

However, since their squad depth is so thin, it's unclear whether they'll make it all the way to the end or not which is why transfers are already being mooted in January.

Everton want £80 million for Jarrad Branthwaite

Even though Liverpool focused on improving their defence in the summer, some cracks are still showing.

Jeremy Jacquet , Virgil van Dijk and Ronald Araujo have all helped shore up the Reds' back line massively and, without this trio among their ranks, Liverpool would be so much worse off.

However, left-back is a different story altogether with neither Kostas Tsimikas nor Milos Kerkez meeting the standards expected of them.

But, since Van Dijk 's current Liverpool contract is set to expire in June 2027, his future is undecided.

And, while Liverpool's fans will almost certainly want the Dutchman to stay, it does feel like Liverpool will need to have a succession plan in place just in case their captain doesn't stay on.

That's why this latest update from Football Insider on Everton's valuation of Jarrad Branthwaite will certainly pique the interest of Liverpool's fanbase.

"Everton still believe that centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite is an £80million player, sources have told Football Insider," they wrote .

"The Toffees have no plans to cash in on the 24-year-old, and still regard him as one of the Premier League's best defenders when he is fit.

"Sources say that while the Merseysiders do not want to lose the defender, they are confident that he will net them an eye-watering sum one day.

"Former Manchester United chief scout Mick Brown told Football Insider last week that Liverpool are working on a shock move to sign Branthwaite next summer.

"The ex-recruitment chief outlined that the Reds have had scouts watching the defender at the Hill Dickinson S tad ium on several occasions of late.

"Brown made it clear that Liverpool are doing their "due diligence" on Branthwaite, and believe he "ticks a lot of boxes" as a potential replacement for Virgil van Dijk."

Liverpool signing Jarrad Branthwaite would be unreal for them

One thing that rarely ever happens is Liverpool and Everton conducting transfer business with one another.

Although both teams are often at opposite ends of the Premier League table to one another, their rivalry is still fierce with both sets of fans looking forward to their fixtures each season.

And, even though a deal for Ndiaye is now off the table thanks to him joining Manchester City , a deal for the English centre-back could certainly brighten the mood at Anfield if Van Dijk chooses to exit.

Indeed, the " outstanding " defender's injury history is a tad worrying but, since he's managed to stay fit since the start of the 2026-27 season, there's hope that he's now grown out of that stage in his career.

Branthwaite is still only 24 years old so he has plenty of time to grow into an even better player and, if he's wanting to challenge for silverware and not move too far away from his current home, where better is there for him to go than L4?

Here's hoping that these rumours are true and Liverpool actually try and agree a deal with their rivals for him.