If the latest update from journalist Florian Plettenberg is to be believed, it may only be a matter of time before current Sporting Lisbon head coach Ruben Amorim is prowling up and down the Anfield touchline as Liverpool's new manager.
Regarded as the number one pick to take over from the distinguished Jurgen Klopp since Xabi Alonso disappointed several clubs by staying loyal to Bayer Leverkusen, Amorim is said to have verbally agreed a switch to Merseyside at the end of the season, by which point he may have achieved a top-flight and cup double with Sporting.
While there is still the small matter of negotiating his exit with the Portuguese powerhouses, Amorim is supposedly yearning for the Liverpool job, and the 39-year-old is expected to put pen to paper on a three-year agreement.
As Liverpool's existing squad members adapt to this change of seismic proportions, Amorim - together with sporting director Richard Hughes and Fenway Sports Group's CEO of Football Michael Edwards - will get down to business identifying areas of improvement for the 2024-25 campaign.
Defence is believed to be a priority area for the Premier League and Europa League title-chasers, who are crying out for more options in the heart of their rearguard and could also target a new midfielder and new winger depending on exits.
With that in mind, Sports Mole picks out four current Sporting players who could follow Amorim to Anfield.
Goncalo Inacio
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Due to Joel Matip's expiring contract, Ibrahima Konate's struggles for fitness and Virgil van Dijk's deal running out in the summer of 2025 - although the Dutchman will surely be in line for a renewal - at least one new centre-back should touch down at Anfield for the 2024-25 season.
Even before the Liverpool fanbase were made aware of Klopp's decision to step down and began running the rule over potential candidates to replace him, the Reds hierarchy were already believed to have had their eye on Goncalo Inacio, heralded as one of the most promising defensive prospects on the continent.
Already making 163 appearances for Sporting at just 22 years of age, Inacio has established a reputation as a goalscoring centre-back with 15 efforts for his club - in addition to nine assists - while he also netted twice for Portugal in a 9-0 Euro 2024 qualifying obliteration of Luxembourg a few months ago.
The 6ft 1in centre-back also wore the armband for Sporting in their 2-1 Europa League last-16 second-leg loss to Atalanta BC, denying him the chance to test his mettle against the Reds, who will apparently have to battle Real Madrid and Manchester United for his services.
One quick look at the statistics, though, and it is easy to see why the left-footed Inacio is in high demand. Against centre-backs in Europe's big five leagues over the past year, the 22-year-old ranks in the 97th percentile for passes completed per game (77.88) and the 99th for passes into the final third per game (8.48), as detailed by FBref.
A left-footed centre-back with masterful ball skills is always likely to command a high transfer fee, though, and with Inacio extending his Sporting deal last year, Liverpool might have to pay the entirety of his €60m (£51.4m) release clause to fend off the competition.
Ousmane Diomande
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Along the same defensive lines, Ousmane Diomande - two years Inacio's junior at 20 - has risen to prominence for both club and country this season, becoming an Africa Cup of Nations winner with Ivory Coast earlier this year.
Diomande only played in two of his country's group games during the continental championships, but he has become a regular fixture in the heart of Amorim's defence in his first full season at Sporting, who poached him from Danish side FC Midtjylland in January 2023.
Possessing a penchant for tackling dribblers, Diomande has won 80% of such contests against attackers in the past year - putting him in the 99th percentile for centre-backs - and he is not afraid to marauder forward himself either, attempting 0.73 carries into the final third per game.
Liverpool may very well have found their natural successor to Matip should they opt to pursue a deal for Diomande, but he could prove to be an even more expensive acquisition at €80m (£68.5m), while Arsenal and Chelsea have also been tipped to battle for his signature too.
Morten Hjulmand
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While most of Liverpool's midfield rebuild was completed last summer - and has proven to be a brilliant success - Klopp is expected to part ways with another engine room enforcer this summer, when the injury-plagued Thiago Alcantara's contract expires.
Furthermore, 31-year-old Wataru Endo - as reliable as he has been for Liverpool - is not a long-term solution in the number six role, which is where Danish lynchpin Morten Hjulmand could come into the equation.
Signed from Lecce in 2023, the 6ft 1in Hjulmand has seamlessly slotted into Amorim's two-man midfield system as a deep-lying player, making 43 appearances in all competitions and even chipping in with four goals and four assists from his number six role.
The 24-year-old - a five-cap Denmark international - has also avoided a single injury this season, music to the ears of Liverpool fans amid their club's current fitness crisis, only missing one Primeira Liga match due to a totting-up of yellow cards.
As is the case with Diomande, though, Hjulmand's exit option is believed to be set at just north of £65m, but Liverpool could have a clear run at his services after former suitors Tottenham Hotspur apparently withdrew their interest in the boyhood Arsenal supporter.
Marcus Edwards
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In all truth, a new frontman is only likely to move up Liverpool's list of transfer priorities if Saudi Arabia manage to twist the arm of Mohamed Salah, whom Liverpool are braced to receive significant offers for in the summer window.
Even if the Reds are successful in convincing Salah to stay on for one more year, the ex-Chelsea and Roma man is out of contract in 2025 - at which point he will be 33 years of age - and his prolific powers are sure to wane at some stage.
With Viktor Gyokeres an out-and-out central option and not what Liverpool are looking for at this moment in time, former Tottenham Hotspur winger Marcus Edwards could be an intriguing option amid his eye-catching exploits in Portugal.
The 25-year-old Englishman hit double figures in both goals and assists in all competitions last term - 12 of his own and 14 assists - while he boasts a respectable six goals and eight assists from 40 outings in the current campaign too.
An incredibly dangerous dribbler on his day, Edwards is fouled nearly four times a game on average, and he has registered 0.95 take-ons leading to a shot per game over the past year, putting him the 98th percentile against wingers in the big five leagues.
A return to the Premier League with either Manchester United or Crystal Palace has been mooted for Edwards, whose old club Tottenham should not be against Liverpool making their move, as they stand to pocket 35% of any profit made from a future sale.
Ben Knapton
