Liverpool Transfer News: Latest Rumours, Major Signings and Top Stars Linked

Liverpool are reportedly keen on signing Zenit St. Petersburg holding-midfield player Axel Witsel, a deal that could put the Reds in direct competition with Merseyside neighbours and rivals Everton.

It's also a deal motivated by Liverpool missing out to Paris Saint-Germain in the race to sign Sevilla and Poland midfield destroyer Grzegorz Krychowiak, according to Neil Moxley of the Daily Mirror.

Moxley has revealed how new Everton boss Ronaldo Koeman wants both Witsel and Manchester United's Morgan Schneiderlin to anchor a new-look midfield for the Toffees. However, interest from Liverpool chief Jurgen Klopp has given Witsel a "choice to make over his future."

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Ironically, it's Koeman's interest in Schneiderlin that may inadvertently help Klopp land Witsel, per Jack Wilson of the Daily Star Sunday: "If Koeman gets Schneiderlin, Anfield chiefs believe they will then have the upperhand in trying to convince Witsel to move to them. The chance of more football on offer on the Red side of the city—plus the lure of Jurgen Klopp—are two of the club's main selling points."

Witsel makes sense as a target for a Liverpool squad needing a more reliable presence at the base of midfield. Emre Can is not always the most disciplined positionally, while 29-year-old Brazilian Lucas Leiva has been tipped for the Anfield exit, following an interview he gave to radio station Jovem Pan (h/t This is Anfield for Metro).

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With Krychowiak set to join PSG "within the next 48 hours," according to Joe Bernstein of MailOnline, Witsel is a viable alternative for Liverpool.

In fact, the Belgium international possesses the attributes Klopp has often featured at the base of midfield. The Anfield boss typically favoured a playmaker during his days with former club Borussia Dortmund, when schemers such as Nuri Sahin and Ilkay Gundogan occupied the deep middle.

Like those players, Witsel knows how to take care of the ball. He completed 89.1 percent of his passes for Zenit in the Russian Premier League, before completing 92.6 percent in helping Belgium reach the quarter-finals of this summer's UEFA Euro 2016, per WhoScored.com.

Witsel is also a trusted defensive presence who rarely vacates his post in front of a back four. Klopp often paired Gundogan with Sven Bender, a virtual third centre-back, while at Dortmund. Signing Witsel would give him one player capable of doing the job of two, affording Klopp the freedom to include more attacking playmakers, the current strength of his squad, in advanced areas.

The Reds need a natural anchor like Witsel in midfield, behind their platoon of forward-thinking schemers, including Adam Lallana and Philippe Coutinho.

Landing the 28-year-old without the lure of European football next season won't be easy, but it's a deal Klopp should do all he can to make happen.