Liverpool 'not considering' move for Sven Botman

Sven Botman is not a transfer target for Liverpool despite reports, according to journalist James Pearce.

Liverpool's famous injury crisis at centre back has left Jurgen Klopp relying on midfielder Fabinho and inexperienced academy products Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams for much of this season.

As a result, there has been much talk of the defenders Liverpool could/should turn to now that the January window is open for business.

One of the many names touted has been Lille's Sven Botman. The 20-year-old Dutch starlet has impressed in Ligue 1 this season, having joined from Ajax in the summer, and has also been linked with Manchester United.

While there have been various reports of Liverpool's supposed interest and even a comment from Botman's defensive partner and former Southampton stalwart Jose Fonte, it seems that talk of an imminent move is jumping the gun.

The Athletic's James Pearce claims there have been 'no talks over a deal', with Liverpool 'not considering' the transfer.

Instead, Pearce suggested on Twitter the recent links may simply be a result of those trying to create interest in the young defender - a not uncommon practice in the world of agents and transfer rumours.

Klopp himself has been coy on the need for reinforcements this January to defend Liverpool's Premier League title.

Commenting on the possibility of signing a new defender, Klopp said he was unsure.

“We have solutions in the squad obviously but we struggled still with injuries,” he said.

“We have solutions with the squad but if we can do something in the window, I don’t know. It is a very difficult transfer window as you can imagine. Not all of the clubs have real money.  Doing something makes no sense. Doing the right thing makes sense. So far we have really liked what we have done.

"I can't really say anything about [the financial impact of the COVID-19 outbreak], but you can imagine, six months ago we talked about how much all football clubs struggle and thank God we could keep going, and it helped all the clubs as well.

"But it's still not the time where you really just [throw money around], at least not for us. I don't know exactly how it is at other clubs, but we have to be really cautious and very serious, and so I don't know what we can and what we can't do."

90min has previously reported that Liverpool have a shortlist of centre back options, including Dayot Upamecano and Ozan Kabak, though the club may wait until summer before making a move.