Jurgen Klopp
Klopp has kept his faith in Dejan Lovren, Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan this season. Getty

KEY POINTS

  • After failing to sign the Southampton captain, Liverpool looked into other options.
  • Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly was also considered by was deemed to expensive.

Liverpool turned down the option of pursuing a defensive alternative to Virgil van Dijk during the summer transfer window as Jurgen Klopp was satisfied with Liverpool's current options, according to reports.

The Reds were frustrated in their attempts to sign Netherlands captain van Dijk as Southampton dug their heels in over the £60-rated defender. While the club added another left-back to their ranks in Andy Robertson, Klopp began the season with the same central defensive options he ended the 2016-17 campaign with.

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This season, the club have won just three of their opening seven games of the Premier League campaign and conceded 12 goals in the process – the joint-worst record in the top 14 of the table and worse than newly promoted trio Newcastle United, Huddersfield Town and Brighton and Hove Albion.

The arrival of van Dijk may have helped remedy those problems, but Southampton's refusal to sell ended those efforts. According to the Daily Mail, the Reds then briefly considered moving for Colombia international Davinson Sanchez, who would later leave Ajax to join Tottenham Hotspur for a club record £42m fee. The 21-year-old has looked at ease as part of the Spurs back line since his arrival, immediately handed a starting role as part of a back three alongside Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen and the Mail report that ultimately Liverpool were "happy" for the defender to move to north London.

Liverpool also considered the option of Napoli centre-half Kalidou Koulibaly, only to be off by Napoli's valuation of the centre-half.

Chelsea are another Premier League giant who have been forced to abandon their interest in Koulibaly in recent years. The Senegal international was heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge in 2016 before David Luiz returned to the club from Paris Saint-Germain, only to see an offer of €58m rejected by Napoli chairman Aurelio de Laurentiis.

With Liverpool unwilling to meet Napoli's demands, Klopp was then satisfied beginning the season with the options of Dejan Lovren, Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan.

Liverpool are likely to renew their interest in van Dijk during the January transfer window with the Dutchman's recent comments offering them hope, telling Fox Sports: "Halfway through the season, maybe we can see what's possible."

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