Liverpool ‘practically close’ first January signing with ‘fee agreed’ for outstanding LaLiga colossus

Liverpool are on the cusp of signing Sevilla star Loic Bade in a deal that will make the powerful defender their first capture of the January transfer window and with reports from Spain revealing the bargain fee Richard Hughes has agreed to pay for the Frenchman.

The Reds had an extremely quiet summer transfer window with just Federico Chiesa adding to Arne Slot’s squad. However, the Merseysiders did also secure the future signing of Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, with the Georgian on course to move to Anfield next summer. But instead of wildly splashing the cash, Slot wanted to employ a more methodical approach, stressing that the Liverpool squad he was inheriting from Jurgen Klopp was one of the finest around.

That has certainly proved to be the case with the Reds riding high with 15 wins from 17 games across all competitions so far, putting them top of the Premier League and Champions League respectively.

But with Liverpool in pursuit of four trophies over the second half of the season, Slot will now be given cash to strengthen his squad and the Reds manager now has his eyes on some key additions to boost their trophy chances.

While we understand that a left-back and a midfielder remain on his wishlist, it’s reported that Bade is now on the brink of becoming their first January signing, with the Reds having seemingly beaten a host of clubs to the Sevilla defender’s signature.

And while the 23-year-old Frenchman has a €60m (£50.1m, $63.5m) exit clause in his contract, Todo Fichajes reports that Liverpool have ‘practically closed’ the signing of Bade having ‘agreed a fee’ of €25m (£20.9m, $26.5m) to bring the centre-half to Anfield.

The report claims, despite interest from several Premier League sides – Bade has been linked with the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham in recent weeks – it is Liverpool sporting director Hughes who has ‘prevailed in the negotiations’ to sign the former Nottingham Forest loanee.

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Why do Sevilla want to sell Bade and how will it affect Van Dijk?

Bade only signed a contract extension at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium in September to keep him with the Andalusian side until 2029.

But having paid just €12m to bring him to the club 18 months ago, the cash-strapped LaLiga side have been looking to sell the defender to help ease their apparent financial crisis.

Sensing an opportunity to pounce, the report claims Liverpool have wasted little time in tying up a deal for the powerful defender.

While yet to be capped by France, Bade has been in and around their squads of late and his first taste of senior international football is not considered far away. The prospect of a move to Liverpool will likely enhance those chances.

TEAMtalk confirmed earlier this month that Bade was on a two-man defensive shortlist of Liverpool’s in 2025, with Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi also on their wishlist.

But with Palace unwilling to negotiate mid-season, and with the Eagles likely to hold out for a fee of £70m-plus, it would come as no surprise if the Reds had deemed Bade a more sensible and cost-effective option.

Sources have also told us that the signing of a new centre-half will not affect Liverpool’s plans to tie down Virgil van Dijk to a new deal.

The Reds skipper is out of contract at the season’s end, but all parties are keen to extend that arrangement. Sources told us earlier this month that a new deal is ‘closer than many people expect’ for the 33-year-old and that a new two-year deal is on the table for the Dutch defender.

The potential signing of Bade further strengthens the Reds in an area that already boasts the likes of Ibrahima Konate, Jarell Quansah and Joe Gomez, in addition to Van Dijk.

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Another defender reportedly on Liverpool’s radar is Nottingham Forest’s Brazilian star Murillo. However, with reports claiming the Tricky Trees had placed a prohibitive fee of around £80m on his head, it is little wonder the Reds have been scared off.

Meanwhile, reports in the Italian press claim Liverpool are eyeing former Chelsea star Christian Pulisic as a concrete target and could launch a big-money move for him next year.

The Reds have been linked with the USA winger on several occasions before but it’s claimed they now have a good chance of landing their man after Milan’s asking price came to light.

Elsewhere, Liverpool have also received significant news over the future of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

The right-back is another star out of contract next summer and, while heavily linked with Real Madrid, a strong update claims he will snub the Spanish giants for two reasons and after FSG tabled what has been described as a ‘record contract’ to secure his services.

How does Bade compare to Van Dijk?

If Liverpool do manage to land upon Bade, they will be signing a central defender widely regarded as one of the best centre-halves in the Spanish game.

Per FBref, he ranks among the top 3% of his central peers across all of Europe’s five main leagues over the past year for tackles won (2.69) and successful take-ons (0.58) per 90 minutes.

Over the last calendar year, he also boasts an average of 2.77 aerial duels per 90 over that time. His passing is not bad too, with an average accuracy of 83.1%, though that is down on most of his rivals, showing an area of obvious improvement.

Van Dijk, by comparison, remains the real deal and right at the top of the tree across Europe’s top five leagues.

And for tackles won (1.13) and successful take-ons (0.08), Van Dijk is very much behind Bade.

But where Van Dijk does excel is in every other aspect of defending, with the Reds star boasting a pass accuracy of 91.6% and winning an average of a dominant 4.03 aerial duels per 90.

Van Dijk is also in the top 3% when compared to his peers when it comes to shots, shot-creating actions and touches in the opposition’s box.