Liverpool are reportedly ready to battle Real Madrid for Jude Bellingham's signature next summer.
Chelsea are also said to be interested in the England and Borussia Dortmund midfielder, who turns 19 on Wednesday.
Dortmund sold Erling Haaland to Manchester City for £51m earlier this month – and Bellingham looks set to be the next top talent to net the German giants a tidy profit.
La Liga champions Real might have made a move for the ex-Birmingham City starlet - who is said to be valued at around £85m - this summer.
But, according to AS (via MailOnline) (opens in new tab), they are eager to bring him to the Bernabeu in a year's time and add him to a midfield field unit which they have just bolstered with the addition of French prodigy Aurelien Tchouameni.
Should he head to the Spanish capital, Bellingham could become the first English player to turn out for Los Blancos since David Beckham.
Real would surely face seriously stiff competition for his services, though - perhaps especially from Liverpool, with Bellingham said to be (opens in new tab) "more than interested" in a switch to Anfield.
The Reds have made big moves in attack, signing Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez – in turn absorbing Sadio Mane's departure for Bayern Munich and the potential exit of Mo Salah at the end of next season.
Continuing to evolve their midfield could be the next priority for Jurgen Klopp and co. – and Bellingham could be at the centre of that.
More Liverpool stories
Jurgen Klopp has stressed that his side will not stop in their pursuit of stopping Manchester City in the Premier League – but that their 2021/22 should not have been possible to achieve.
Mohamed Salah is a major option for Real Madrid to turn to after losing out on Kylian Mbappe, though Liverpool are making moves of their own during this transfer window, eyeing a deal for Matthijs de Ligt, according to reports and listening to offers for one midfielder.
Cafu, meanwhile, has compared Trent Alexander-Arnold to himself.
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