Ideal Liverpool center-back transfer is available this summer but there is one big problem

Liverpool looked at Chelsea defender Levi Colwill last summer and a year later, a center-back remains a priority. With Joel Matip leaving the club at the expiry of his contract, the most important thing for the Reds to get done this summer is bringing in a defender.

While Arne Slot inherits a strong squad from Jurgen Klopp, at the heart of the Liverpool defense is where there is an obvious gap. Sepp van den Berg did well on loan but isn't at the required level and has already made his feelings clear on a transfer exit, while Virgil van Dijk is not getting any younger.

Jarell Quansah had a breakout season, Joe Gomez can come into the equation, and Ibrahima Konate is superb when fully fit and firing but slightly injury-prone, but adding another body in that position appears to be a necessity for Liverpool.

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It can be debated as to whether that player should play on the left side, the right side, or perhaps a mixture of the two. Van Dijk will still play most of the minutes on the left but the Dutchman's career might benefit from him being rotated in and out of the side more often and there will be more than enough games for everyone.

It would be handy for any addition to be homegrown and it is a given that they will be young and with a high ceiling. If you were going for a left-sided option, adding a left-footed option — something that Liverpool doesn't currently have — could come into the thinking as well.

If those are the big priorities — youth, homegrown and perhaps left-footed — then there is an obvious player who ticks all three boxes. The problem is that while he might be available for the right price, he plays for Everton.

Jarrad Branthwaite, the ECHO reports, would be available this summer for a fee of $95m (£75m/€88m). The Blues do not want to lose the 21-year-old, who missed out on the final cut for the England squad that travels to Germany for Euro 2020, but may have to cash in on someone amid FFP/PSR concerns.

Manchester United is most keen on Branthwaite and it is said there is a 'growing belief' that the player will move on. And even at that price, Liverpool should have been keen had it not been such a difficult transfer to pull off.

The last senior player to move directly from Everton to Liverpool or vice versa was Abel Xavier in 2002 and it would not be a popular move if Branthwaite's next destination was in the same city. Make no mistake, though: if the player does end up at Old Trafford, Manchester United will be getting a top defensive talent.