Liverpool rejected in transfer move for 19-year-old wonderkid defender

Liverpool are reported to have been rejected by French side RC Lens for a transfer bit for their young defensive star Modibo Sagnan.

There is a common belief that Liverpool were one or two moves short of a perfect transfer window. Many wanted to see a new attacker like Nabil Fekir or Christian Pulisic to bump the attacking options. But even more wanted to have another option at center back. The latest reports of Liverpool moving for Modibo Sagnan confirm Jurgen Klopp agreed.

Reports from FranceFootball.fr state that Liverpool in fact made a transfer bid for the 19-year-old defender but RC Lens rejected the offer. The Reds were hoping to add one more body to the defensive options late in the window knowing that Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip were going to struggle with injury.

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Sagnan was impressive last season in Ligue 2 for the French side. He is the kind of quick, strong center back that many fans have been longing for to develop into a partner for Virgil can Dijk at the heart of the Liverpool defense.

While Lovren, Matip and Ragnar Klavan are all decent options none of them offer pace or strength. That makes the back four somewhat vulnerable when the opposition play with two pacy forwards. Having a different option at the position would give Klopp extra flexibility.

Joe Gomez started yesterday next to the Dutchman and was excellent in his first competitive appearance in that duo. If he can recreate that level next Monday against Crystal Palace then he should be given a long run out in the first team.

The expectation was that Lovren would be the incumbent after improving last season and reaching the World Cup final. However it appears he misled the club about his injury status; he has been ruled out for the next few weeks.

Gomez can hopefully take advantage of the opportunity and cement himself with van Dijk as the partnership for the foreseeable future.