Liverpool are considering a former Premier League player as a replacement for Virgil van Dijk

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has entered the final year of his contract with the club.

The Dutch centre-back was one of Liverpool’s best players during their successful spell under former manager Jurgen Klopp.

Van Dijk’s arrival was a game changer for Liverpool and it would not be wrong to say that his arrival at the club has raised the level of the entire team.

With his contract expiring next year and no decision yet made on a contract extension, the Reds are making plans for life without him.

According to Spanish outlet Fichajes, the Premier League giants have identified Sevilla defender Lioc Bade as the candidate to replace Van Dijk.

The La Liga defender has a buyout fee of £50.6m (€60m) and the Merseyside club are prepared to activate it next year.

Liverpool face competition from Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich to sign the defender.

According to the report, the Reds are considering him as a serious option to replace Virgil van Dijk.

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The defender was loaned to Nottingham Forest in the 2022/23 season, but he left the Premier League club without making a single appearance.

The 24-year-old French defender impressed Arne Slot’s team because of his ‘solidity and youth’.

Liverpool target hopes to prove himself in England

Bade helped France win a silver medal at the Olympic Games this summer by keeping four clean sheets in five starts.

He had a very successful spell at Sevilla, where the defender contributed to the club’s Europa League victory.

It remains to be seen whether Liverpool will follow through with their interest in the defender.

Replacing Van Dijk will not be easy and the defender will have to cope with the pressure of playing for a bigger club in a tougher league, but he is hoping to prove himself in England after a failed spell at Nottingham.