Liverpool Transfer News: Latest on Virgil van Dijk Amid Wesley Hoedt Rumours

Southampton are reportedly preparing for the departure of Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool by weighing up a £12 million bid for Lazio's Dutch centre-back Wesley Hoedt.

According to MailOnline's Simon Jones, central defender Van Dijk, 26, is set to discuss his future with Saints this week and has told the club he is eager to move to Anfield.

Jones added Chelsea are also interested in the Dutchman, but Van Dijk is eager to link up with Reds manager Jurgen Klopp, while Saints are preparing for life without the £60 million-rated defender by going after his compatriot, Hoedt.

Liverpool's pursuit of Van Dijk looked to have ended in June when they were said to have dropped their interest in him after Saints reported the Reds for "tapping up," per David Hytner in the Guardian.

However, the link has emerged again recently, and it looks more and more likely he will be a Liverpool player by the end of the transfer window, per Sky Sports News' Kaveh Solhekol:

Klopp's squad desperately need more strength in defence.

They enjoyed an improved season last term and finished fourth. But they still conceded 42 goals, not a good enough record for a club with Premier League title-winning aspirations. 

Indeed, the last time Liverpool conceded fewer than 40 goals in a Premier League campaign was back in 2009-10.

Joel Matip is arguably the best centre-back in the current Reds squad, while Dejan Lovren and Ragnar Klavan are frustratingly unreliable.

Van Dijk, however, has proved himself to be one of the most consistently effective centre-backs in the Premier League, per WhoScored.com:

He would be an excellent addition to Liverpool's first team, and it seems the Merseyside club are closing in on snapping him up.