Liverpool reportedly have a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ to sign Marc Guehi in the summer, but failing to strengthen in the winter transfer window could be a massive mistake.

Of the many Liverpool players to have underwhelmed this year, Ibrahima Konate’s drop-off has been the most noticeable.

With a lack of concentration and several key mistakes, he looks a shadow of the man who was part of a title-winning defence last season. Konate may not have a ￡100m spotlight in his eyes, but his form has been a key part of Liverpool’s troubles this season.

The problem for Arne Slot is the lack of alternative. Liverpool have five centre-backs on their books; two of them are Virgil Van Dijk and Konate, while obvious replacement Joe Gomez has been in and out with injury.

Highly rated teenager Giovanni Leoni joined in the summer and, even putting aside his long-term injury, Liverpool being forced to rely on a 19-year-old is not a sign of a clear long-term strategy.

It was a problem Liverpool themselves acknowledged and they were one early-summer phone call away from signing Guehi, who has been one of the best defenders in the league this year.

Perhaps during the time they literally had him in the building – late, late in the summer transfer window – Liverpool were able to come to a reported ‘gentleman’s agreement’ that suggests the England international will ignore advances from the likes of Real Madrid and come to Anfield in the summer.

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Meanwhile, Konate, who looked to be the latest free agent to head to the Bernabeu, is reportedly in contract talks to stay on Merseyside. Problem solved…except that there is a hell of a lot of football before then.

Liverpool’s defensive woes are not confined to the central spots either. Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong were part of the exciting rebuild and yet neither has really impressed this year. The latter has even been deployed on the wing with midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai at right-back.

Andy Robertson is arguably the best left-back in the club’s history but his minutes are being carefully managed and that explosive pace that allowed him to bomb down the flanks and back again is perhaps not there anymore.

Conor Bradley is a positive but has not entirely eclipsed the memory of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Liverpool are now fifth in the tablebut the competitiveness of this year’s Premier League means that a few results can send you tumbling down the pecking order – just look at Bournemouth.

Waiting for Guehi is perhaps not a luxury they can afford.

While the title seems lost with Arsenal 10 points ahead, City eight and Villa seven, Champions League football is still very much in contention. Liverpool are currently level with fourth-placed Chelsea, albeit with a +3 goal difference compared to the London side’s +12.

Behind them, Sunderland are two off, Manchester United and Crystal Palace are a further point back. Come the end of the first round of festive fixtures, Liverpool could be eighth.

This round of fixtures also marks the start of a period that has foreign coaches with their head in their hands. Liverpool will play three games in seven days to kick off January. By the end of the month, they will have played at least nine.

Of those, it is no easy run either. While they will be confident of wins at home to Leeds and away to Fulham, they then must travel to the Emirates. Next is the potential banana skin of Burnley at home in the FA Cup for which Slot may feel he has to use more of his senior squad than he would like given their embarrassing exit from the League Cup earlier this year.

A trip to Marseille punctuates the Premier League fixtures before ending the month at home to Newcastle, a week before the visit of Manchester City.

Even the most well-equipped squad struggles at this time of year, when games seem to happen every three days and the conditions are hardly friendly either.

Not to mention that Liverpool are already walking a tightrope. If either of Van Dijk or Konate gets injured, there is no obvious name to fill in.

Waiting for Guehi and riding out the storm may seem like the kind of move that would work in a perfect world, but this season has been anything but perfect for Slot. A reluctance to act in January could have significant ramifications for Liverpool’s season and any summer signings become that little bit harder when you don’t have the golden carrot of Champions League football to offer.

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