The three players Liverpool are ALREADY in talks for

Richard Hughes has the chance to make a massive statement at Anfield this summer.

Liverpool are on the cusp of securing their 20th league title, and the fact they could get even stronger before next season is an exciting prospect.

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Since Hughes took office just under a year ago, the Scot has overseen two senior arrivals for the Reds – Federico Chiesa and Giorgi Mamardashvili.

The signing of Chiesa hasn’t quite gone to plan and Mamardashvili is yet to join the Reds, so it is hard to judge Hughes from these bits of business.

The former Bournemouth man is highly regarded within the industry, and new deals for Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk will have no doubt gone a long way to ratifying this praise, but this summer Hughes can truly prove he means business in Merseyside.

Who are Liverpool in talks for?

Transfer speculation is non-stop when it comes to the Reds, and it can sometimes be difficult to follow who exactly is on Liverpool’s radar, but there are three players that the club have already opened talks for – despite the transfer window not opening for almost two months.

Milos Kerkez is one of the players Liverpool have already started to accelerate their interest in, and Anfield Watch exclusively revealed before Christmas that the champions elect had begun talks to bring the Hungarian to Merseyside.

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Since then, talk about Kerkez and other potential targets in his position has continued – but it now seems pretty likely that the 21-year-old is Hughes’ top target to replace on of Andy Robertson or Kostas Tsimikas this summer.

Kerkez isn’t the only Bournemouth player that Liverpool are in talks for, however. According to recent reports the Reds have informed the Cherries that they will meet Dean Huijsen’s £50 million release clause this summer too.

A number of other clubs, both from the Premier League and abroad, are also trying to tempt the Spain international away from the south coast but Liverpool will be hard to turn down.

Who will be Liverpool’s new striker?

The most talked about position heading into the summer has undoubtedly been the Reds’ spot up top. Arne Slot and Hughes are ready to sign a new no.9 and, as exclusively revealed by Anfield Watch, Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota are both among the names that are expected to depart.

Pretty much every striker in Europe has been linked with an Anfield switch by at least one report, with names such as Alexander Isak, Joao Pedro, Benjamin Sesko, Julian Alvarez and Liam Delap all on Liverpool’s radar.

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Hand-picking the Reds next frontman is no easy task but, under the watch of Michael Edwards, Hughes has been working hard to assess potential options.

The striker that Liverpool have opened talks over is Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike, as was exclusively revealed by Anfield Watch earlier this month.

Anfield Watch understands that Liverpool’s sporting director has already put the wheels in motion on a move for Ekitike, with talks being held with the player’s representatives in London.

Liverpool’s big summer plans

The upcoming transfer window has been talked up as one of the biggest in the club’s history, and it really could be.

Thanks to the club’s healthy financial position there is plenty of room for spending, and player sales could further add to a potentially massive transfer kitty.

It feels unlikely that the Reds business will be limited to the three players that they are already in talks for, and Hughes will have the chance to properly make his mark on the playing squad after almost 12 months of assessing its needs.

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With one hand already on the Premier League trophy, the focus of those behind the scenes at Anfield will be starting to shift to the transfer market, and Liverpool’s first deal of the 2025 summer transfer window could be done sooner rather than later.