Liverpool Transfer News: Mamadou Sakho Revelation, Latest Rumours

Lyon have revealed they rejected the opportunity to sign Mamadou Sakho, Liverpool's out-of-favour defender who is on loan with Crystal Palace. Meanwhile, the Reds have received new hope in the race to sign Borussia Dortmund starlet Christian Pulisic.

Sakho didn't feature for the Reds during the first half of the season after he was sent home from pre-season training. As reported by David Maddock of the Daily Mirror, manager Jurgen Klopp has made it clear he has no future at Anfield.

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He joined Crystal Palace on loan in January, but Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has now told RMC (h/t Goal's Joe Wright) his club passed on the chance to sign the France international:

"We had an opportunity with a left-footed defender who is available in England—Mamadou Sakho," he told RMC. "We didn't choose this solution because we have faith in terms of the management of [Nicolas] Nkoulou and [Emanuel] Mammana.”

Lyon have struggled defensively in Ligue 1 this season, and it has hampered the club's chances of finishing in the top three. The only signing the club made during the January transfer window was Manchester United forward Memphis Depay.

Sakho started his first match of the season on Saturday and made a fantastic impression, as Crystal Palace earned a win over West Bromwich Albion and finished with a clean sheet. According to the club's official Twitter account, the Eagles liked what they saw:

The 27-year-old's exclusion remains one of the most baffling stories of the season. Sakho was arguably the club's most talented defender before the arrival of Joel Matip, and the Reds have struggled on the defensive end of the pitch throughout the season.

Klopp undoubtedly had a good reason to freeze Sakho out, but Liverpool could have been challenging for the Premier League title at this point had he given the former Paris Saint-Germain star a second chance.

Elsewhere, Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has admitted BVB could part with some of their forwards, boosting Liverpool's belief Pulisic could become available for the right fee.

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Per Ruhr Nachrichten (h/t Aaron Flanagan of the Daily Mirror), he said: “Especially in the offensive area, we tend to have too many players. Something can happen there.”

Following the transfer of Alexander Isak, Dortmund are loaded at the attacking end, with young studs like Emre Mor, Ousmane Dembele and Pulisic joining veteran stars Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Marco Reus and Mario Gotze, among others.

The older players are more likely to leave, but Dortmund can only give enough minutes to develop to some of their youngsters―they can't possibly move forward with all of them.

Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe is a major fan of the American and gave him a spot in his Under-19 Dream Team:

Per the report, the youngster only signed a new deal in January, and a move seems unlikely. Pulisic has received a healthy dose of minutes this season, and while he sits behind Dembele in the pecking order, he remains an important part of manager Thomas Tuchel's squad.

The arrival of Isak could change things up―the Swede is remarkably developped for his age and seems ready to make a big impact. It's a situation worth keeping an eye on, even if things aren't likely to change before the summer.