We’re still a long way off the end of the season, and there is plenty of work for Liverpool to do as it continues its quest for silverware. Nevertheless, thoughts are already beginning to turn to the summer transfer window for some, with one area in particular already looking like a priority.

After a quiet January window which saw no new additions at Anfield, Arne Slot has indicated work is already underway behind the scenes on a summer haul. The Liverpool boss hasn’t given any specifics, but left-back does look to be an obvious area to target.

Plenty of names have already been linked, not least Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, while Wolves’ Rayan Ait-Nouri is another that has been touted a lot over the last year or so. Now, another name looks to have entered the frame - Miguel Gutierrez.

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According to David Lynch, the Girona star is being looked at by the Reds, having already attracted interest from the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Bayern Munich last summer. Should the Reds choose to act on their interest, they will have a clear way in, with a $36m (£29m/€35m) release clause having been widely reported.

A Madrid native, Gutierrez began life at Getafe’s academy before joining Real Madrid in 2011. He worked his way through the ranks in the Spanish capital and attracted plenty of interest along the way, not least from Jose Mourinho, who was linked with moves for the defender at both Manchester United and Tottenham.

Gutierrez was promoted to Real’s first-team by Zinedine Zidane during pre-season in 2019, before going on to make his professional debut in April 2021 against Cadiz. His first start would come a month later against Granada, but he would only make 10 appearances in total for Los Blancos before making the move to Girona in 2022.

Since then, he has caught the eye with his performances, particularly last season as the Catalonian club broke into the top three in La Liga, qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in the process. That place at Europe’s top table this season saw Gutierrez come up against Liverpool, with the left-back doing a good job of keeping Mohamed Salah on a leash despite the Reds claiming a 1-0 win.

As it happens, Slot was already very familiar with Gutierrez, as he revealed in his pre-match press conference ahead of the two sides meeting back in December.

“I think their game model is what stands out, their idea about football,” Slot said about Girona. “Last season I watched quite a lot of them, because I found it really interesting what he (Michel) did with the left full-back (Gutierrez).

“He’s still doing it this season as well, playing so inverted, having such a free role from that position – at that moment of time, you didn’t see that so often. That was interesting to see.”

Liverpool though could face a problem if it tries to sign Gutierrez in the summer. Real still has a $9.3m (£7.5m/€9m) buyback clause for the left-back, which it might well look to utilize after Alphonso Davies signed a new deal at Bayern.

If the Reds can win the race for his signature though, Gutierrez is certainly an option that Liverpool should be keeping a close eye on over the coming months.