Ask a Liverpool supporter where Jurgen Klopp needs to strengthen his squad; the most likely answer would be a request for defensive additions.
While the Anfield side have been excellent this season and perch atop the Premier League table after 20 matches, it would be negligent to turn away from the fragility of the backline, which is perhaps one injury away from alarm bells ringing at the transfer table.
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Joel Matip, paragon of commitment and resilience, ruptured his ACL against Fulham last month and is out of contract at the end of the campaign. While the young Jarell Quansah has burst onto the scene with age-belying command, it's clear a further option is desired.
Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate make for a formidable first-choice partnership, and with this in mind, perhaps Klopp would be wise – transfer kitty permitting – to move for prodigious up-and-comer Leny Yoro.
Liverpool transfer news – Leny Yoro
Yoro has risen to the fore with LOSC Lille in his French homeland over the past two years, with Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United all taking note of his displays in December.
And now, with the January market open for business, such speculation is intensifying, with Le10 Sport claiming that Lille are getting rather fed up with the persisting interest in their prodigy and have slapped a €90m (£78m) price tag on his signature.
Manchester United and Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain are leading the race, or so it is believed, but Liverpool are not far behind and are even believed to have held talks with Yoro's club last month.
Leny Yoro's season in numbers
Last year, Yoro burst onto the scene with Lille's senior set-up and played 13 times in the French top flight, before he had even reached adulthood.
Now, the 18-year-old has established himself as a starring member of Paulo Fonseca's squad and has started 15 matches in the league, scoring twice, completing 91% of his passes, averaging 4.2 ball recoveries and 3.4 clearances per game and impressively winning 67% of his contested duels, as per Sofascore.
Described as a prospect made of "world-class material" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Yoro's innate ball-playing ability and robustness in recycling possession and blasting away danger hint toward a fruitful future at the top of the European game.
He's currently out of contract in 2025, and while a fresh deal is certainly not out of the question for the player, who might want to continue his immediate development in homey surroundings, should he deem that his prodigious beginning beckons the call of the Premier League despite his age, then Liverpool would find that the expensive transfer demands are reduced.
Leny Yoro's style of play
Standing at 6 foot 1, Yoro is not the tallest defender on the block but he has an innate understanding of distance and spatial awareness to take control of each situation he finds himself in, with his 68% success rate in aerial battles in Ligue 1 evidence of this.
Just to put that in perspective, Ibrahima Konate has won 69% of his aerial duels in the Premier League this season, and the 6 foot 4 colossus is one of the most imposing around.
Yoro's technical ability is probably the most eye-catching element of his game, but he is not defined by his distribution, also one of the crispest, most precise in a duel across Europe, as is expounded below.
A natural eye for goal is hardly a negative either, with the teenager ranking among the top 13% of centre-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals, the top 7% for pass completion, the top 20% for passes attempted and interceptions and the top 24% for successful take-ons per 90, as per FBref.
With all the trappings of a first-class defender at the height of the game, Yoro – who has been dubbed a "Rolls-Royce" by journalist and U23 scout Antonio Mango – now just needs to build and sustain his performances, and by moving to Liverpool perhaps he could emulate his countryman William Saliba.
How Leny Yoro compares to William Saliba
Saliba joined Arsenal from Saint Etienne for around £27m back in 2019 but only made his debut at the start of last season, having remained in France for several years to hone his craft, a prudent move, it must be said.
Like Yoro, the Gunners titan is an incredible passer of the ball, ranking among the top 6% of positional peers for pass completion and the top 8% for passes attempted per 90 and also regarded as a "Rolls-Royce" – as was said by teammate Aaron Ramsdale.
He's not averse to finding the back of the net either and has netted four goals since properly arriving at the Emirates Stadium a year and a half ago.
In the Premier League this season, the 12-cap Les Bleus star has completed 93% of his passes, averaging 6.1 recoveries and 2.0 clearances per match and succeeding with 60% of his aerial duels.
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Player
Club
1
John Stones
Manchester City
2
Ruben Dias
Manchester City
3
Jules Kounde
Barcelona
4
Alessandro Bastoni
Inter Milan
5
Antonio Rudiger
Real Madrid
*Sourced via Football Transfers
The table above highlights the kind of player that Yoro could become if he continues his rise, plying his trade industriously and proving his skills.
It's worth noting that Saliba spent several seasons making the improvements to his game that have now placed him in the conversation for the Premier League's finest defender; had he been rushed in this regard, perhaps he might not have found his feet with such success.
Yoro will likely feel that he is ready to take on the world and will unquestionably be somewhat attracted to a transfer to one of the illustrious suitors, but for the good of his career, perhaps joining Liverpool's project on Merseyside would be the perfect move.
