Liverpool Transfer News: Latest on Andrea Pirlo and Petr Cech Rumours

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers is said to be "very keen" on signing Juventus midfielder Andrea Pirlo. In what looks like a bid to add experienced winners to his squad, the Northern Irishman is also reported to be in the running to sign Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech.

Pirlo needs no introduction. He remains one of football's greatest passers, a calm, collected metronome whose vision ensures he still has plenty of playing time ahead of him at the age of 35.

Italian publication Tuttosport (h/t talkSPORT) suggests Liverpool and Premier League champions Chelsea "have contacted Juventus" over the possibility of bringing Pirlo to England at the end of the season.

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Pirlo himself has suggested his time in Turin could be coming to a close, per the aforementioned report: "Ending my Juventus story by pocketing the Champions League would be a dream come true. But I won't stop playing, I'll go on as long as I have the same great desire to keep training every day."

Juve lead Real Madrid 2-1 heading into the Champions League semi-final second leg. Pirlo has made 26 appearances across the European competition and Serie A this season, scoring five goals and providing five assists, per WhoScored.com.

His pass accuracy stands at 87.9 per cent, with an average of 7.8 successful long balls per match. Pirlo is in the league of Paul Scholes and Xavi Hernandez when it comes to distribution and choosing the right pass at the right time.

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Rodgers needs a clever dictator of possession to work alongside Jordan Henderson in Liverpool's midfield next season. Steven Gerrard's decision to join Los Angeles Galaxy leaves the club short on leaders and players with experience of winning trophies. Pirlo has captured it all and could assume a vital role both on and off the pitch at Anfield.

Reds Interested in £10M Cech Deal? 

Liverpool added a plethora of young players last summer, and in keeping with potentially buying experienced stars this time around, Jamie Sanderson of Metro indicates the club "have been cleared to sign" Cech from Chelsea. Sanderson believes £10 million would see the deal completed.

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This is extremely expensive, considering his contract runs out at the end of next season, per Transfermarkt. Cech's value will drop massively in January 2016 if he remains at Stamford Bridge until then. However, with Arsenal also reportedly interested, noted by The Telegraph's Matt Law on Sky Sports' Sunday Supplement, Cech's departure will likely be sealed by the club that shows the most initiative.

But as demonstrated by Liverpool's recent failure to sign Memphis Depay—a player with whom they were heavily linked before Manchester United confirmed a deal, reported by Jim Boardman of the Mirror—taking the initiative isn't high on the club's transfer committee's priority list.

Former Chelsea coach Ray Wilkins doesn't believe the Blues would sell Cech to another Premier League club, per talkSPORT (via Jacob Murtagh of the Mirror):

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If you look at Chelsea’s actions over the last few years, with the likes of Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou, they were all sold outside the country so they couldn’t do any damage to the club in the Premier League. Jose Mourinho will do the same with Petr Cech.

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B/R UK's Sam Tighe recently looked at a handful of signings who could improve the fifth-placed Reds' fortunes:

Current Reds No.1 Simon Mignolet has enjoyed an excellent return to form over the last couple of months, but there's the sense Rodgers wants to add a handful of players who have a history of winning big matches.

Regardless of whether Liverpool qualify for the Champions League, Rodgers' project remains an attractive one. The Anfield club would undoubtedly welcome Pirlo with open arms, though opinion may be split over whether Cech is needed for such a high fee.