Liverpool FC look poised to be involved in a battle with Chelsea for landing the much-coveted signature of West Ham United ace Declan Rice in light of the London-based outfit reducing their asking price for parting ways with the England international in the summer.
Rice has been a long-term target for Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge and the under-fire Blues gaffer is eager on making the midfielder his latest recruit should a deal go through in the coming months.
The Reds’ reported interest in Rice, as claimed by the Express, could stem from the ongoing contract saga with first-team regular Gini Wijnaldum, which has continued to drag on heading into the close of the January transfer window.
Wijnaldum’s persistence towards holding out for a bumper contract offer has led to a prolonged stretch of talks between the Holland international and the Merseyside club, however, to no avail.
Rice’s ability to slot in seamlessly at centre-back is understood to be another reason why Klopp would push for signing the 22-year-old as an injury-depleted backline at Anfield threatens to play a major spoilsport to Liverpool FC’s chances of retaining their Premier League crown.
