Report: Liverpool could consider surprise January loan swoop for World Cup hat-trick scorer | OneFootball

Liverpool have been linked with a surprise January loan swoop for a Champions League-winning striker.

The Reds’ gradual resurgence over the past month has come at a cost as injury problems pile up for Arne Slot, most notably the fractured fibula for Alexander Isak last weekend which means he’ll miss at least the next two months of action.

It leaves Hugo Ekitike as the only out-and-out senior centre-forward in the squad, and the Merseysiders seem likely to miss out on the versatile Antoine Semenyo as the Bournemouth attacker would reportedly prefer a move to Manchester City.

The commencement of the January transfer window from next Thursday at least presents Liverpool with a timely opportunity to bolster their attacking options, and FSG are understood to be considering several prospective targets.

Liverpool considering Goncalo Ramos loan swoop

According to CaughtOffside, one name on the Anfield hierarchy’s radar is Goncalo Ramos, with the Reds understood to be contemplating a six-month loan move for the Paris Saint-Germain striker, who’s viewed as a potentially seamless solution who’d add ‘pressing intensity and penalty-box instincts’

LFC chiefs also seemingly admire Ivan Toney and Dusan Vlahovic, although that pair would be longer-term solutions rather than a quick fix to alleviate the current attacking shortage.

In addition to natural centre-forwards, Liverpool are also believed to have discussed more versatile attackers such as Rodrygo and Bradley Barcola.

(Photo by Franco Arland/Getty Images)

Ramos would provide echoes of Bobby Firmino at Liverpool

Despite only being a semi-regular starter for PSG, Ramos has been enoying a relatively prolific season so far with nine goals in just 984 minutes on the pitch. By way of comparison, Cody Gakpo and Mo Salah have 10 between them in more than 3,000 combined minutes of game-time.

The 24-year-old memorably scored a hat-trick for Portugal in their 6-1 demolition of Switzerland at the 2022 World Cup, more than vindicating Fernando Santos’ bold decision to start him ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo that night, and he’s accrued 10 goals for his country in just 22 caps.

A tactical insight by Total Football Analysis illustrates his aptitude for clever link-up play by dropping deep to receive the ball in pockets of space that he’s opened up with his off-the-ball movement between opposition defenders – traits that Liverpool fans often used to see from Bobby Firmino.

There’s a lot to like about Ramos in terms of his goalscoring frequency and his work out of possession, but FSG signings tend to be for the longer-term rather than being temporary fixes, so a half-season loan for the PSG striker would be a deviation from the norm at Anfield.

Right now it’s difficult to envisage such a move coming off, particularly as Luis Enrique surely won’t want to lose such a reliable operator as his team seek to retain their Champions League crown, but the Portuguese centre-forward would certainly add elite-level competition for Hugo Ekitike in Isak’s absence.