Liverpool Transfer News: Granit Xhaka Bid Expected, Latest Reds Rumours

Liverpool are reportedly eyeing a January move for Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Granit Xhaka and are prepared to make a sizeable bid in an attempt to beat Arsenal to the signing.

According to German outlet Bild (h/t Marc Williams in the Daily Star), the Reds are preparing an offer worth £19.6 million for Xhaka as manager Jurgen Klopp looks to add reinforcements in the new year.

The report also indicated that Gunners boss Arsene Wenger is interested in the 23-year-old Swiss, who is open to a move to the Premier League and has revealed his next stop will be at a "top, top club."

Klopp inherited a talented but incomplete side when he took over from Brendan Rodgers in October and he needs to bring his own signings into the fold.

Per Bundesliga expert Clark Whitney, Xhaka would be an excellent addition at Anfield:

He is remarkably experienced for his age—he was a key part of the Basel first team before moving to Monchengladbach in 2012—and has the requisite edge to excel in the Premier League.

Technically proficient, Xhaka is also versatile, able to play centrally either in a deep-lying defensive role or as a more advanced attacker.

Alongside the likes of Emre Can and Jordan Henderson he could potentially form an excellent central-midfield partnership at Liverpool.

An offer around the £20 million mark could surely tempt Borussia into selling Xhaka in January, and he would be an excellent first buy for Klopp as the German manager looks to return Liverpool to the upper echelons of European football.

However, Liverpool are reportedly unlikely to have any luck in signing former target Dries Mertens in the upcoming transfer window.

Getty Images/Getty Images

The Napoli forward was a reported target for the Reds in the summer, but he is now set to sign a new deal with the Serie A outfit, according to their sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli, per Italy's Radio Crc (via the Express's David Wright):

"There’s a willingness on our part to keep him, and also on his part to stay. We’re working, and we’re confident that there will be no problems. There’s no need for new meetings, the intention is to continue together."

While Mertens, 28, is a talented attacker, Liverpool currently have a number of options across their forward line, and thus losing the Belgian as a potential target is not the biggest of blows.