Not Stones: Liverpool "hold talks" to sign England international centre-back

Liverpool's need for a new central defender is clear for all to see. With Joe Gomez sidelined, Jérémy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni working their way back from long-term injuries of their own and Virgil van Dijk having been given extra rest time, Andoni Iraola is without any senior options for Wednesday night's pre-season friendly against Wrexham at Yankee Stadium.

It is of course only pre-season, so this isn't exactly a major issue, but the Reds cannot afford for this to carry into the competitive campaign. Thus, they were reportedly exploring a move for free agent John Stones, who is set to join Inter Milan instead, while Ezri Konsa of Aston Villa is likely to prove too expensive. So, have Liverpool identified another England international they wish to target?

According to a report by James Wathlan, Liverpool "have held talks" with AC Milan over the possibility of signing Fikayo Tomori, adding that the Reds have stepped up their search for a centre-back, which has become a "priority".

Tomori has just one year remaining on his contract with the Rossoneri, who may well be under pressure to sell key assets this summer, after spectacularly missing out on the Champions League, finishing fifth in Serie A. Tomori did start Milan's first pre-season friendly of the summer against Celtic on Saturday, so appears to be in Rúben Amorim's plans, but could he be on his way to Merseyside?

Would Fikayo Tomori be a good signing for Liverpool?

Since leaving Chelsea for AC Milan in the summer of 2021, Tomori has been a consistent performer for the Italian giants. He has racked up 218 appearances for the club, getting his hands on the Scudetto in 2022 as well as being a key figure in the side that reached the Champions League semi-finals the following year.

Last season, the Canadian-born England international featuring in 33 Serie A matches, of which 31 were starts. Among Serie A defenders, he ranked seventh for tackles and 12th for blocks, as well as completing 1,571 passes; only 20 defenders across the division racked up more.

Tomori also has plenty of familiarity with Liverpool. Since heading to Italy, he has met the Reds three times in the Champions League, all matches won by the Premier League side, but opening the scoring at San Siro in December 2021. The pair also clashed in a pre-season friendly at Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong last July, a 4-2 win for the Rossoneri, with Tomori starting and seeing 78 minutes of action.

Liverpool's need for homegrown players

There is perhaps a reason why Liverpool's purported centre-back targets, Stones, Konsa and Tomori, are all English. This is because the Reds are on the verge of being in desperate need of homegrown players. When looking at Premier League squad rules, put simply, clubs are only permitted to register 17 players over the age of 21 who are not homegrown.

With Trent Alexander-Arnold, Caoimhín Kelleher, Tyler Morton and Jarell Quansah having all departed in the last 12 months or so, the number of Liverpool players exempt from the 17 is diminishing. So, as of right now, who would use up squad spaces?

Liverpool 's non-homegrown or under-21 players

• Alisson & Giorgi Mamardashvili.

• Virgil van Dijk, Miloš Kerkez, Kostas Tsimikas & Calvin Ramsay.

• Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister & Wataru Endō.

• Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo, Federico Chiesa, Hugo Ekitkié & Víctor Muñoz.

As it stands, Liverpool currently have 16 players who would use up the 17 roster spots. Of course, Calvin Ramsay is likely to be moved on, while Hugo Ekitikié's long-term injury means he doesn't need to be registered for the first half of the campaign, not going to feature before 1 January.

Nevertheless, this does not give them much flexibility, if the Reds are going to be as active in the transfer market as most supporters hope, and indeed believe they need to be.

In terms of meeting the requirement of eight homegrown players, Jeremie Frimpong, Conor Bradley, Joe Gomez, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Stefan Bajčetić, Trey Nyoni, Rio Ngumoha and third-choice goalkeeper Freddie Woodman all fall into this category, part of the reason why the latter has recently been handed a new contract. Some of those, like Jérémy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni, are also exempt from being in the 17 because they are aged 21 or under.

Nevertheless, as Liverpool target a busy conclusion to the transfer window, seeking to bolster numerous areas of the pitch, they might run out of roster spots rather quickly. Thus, as they search for a new back-up centre-back, it may be a waste to use one up on an overseas player. Put succinctly, Tomori seems to tick all the boxes; he's homegrown, he's a solid performer and could be available at a cut-price, making this a realistic move.

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