Six potential centre-back alternatives to Mustafi that Liverpool should consider

“You can imagine that we think about everything. It's about doing the right thing. We need to find the right player.” Those were the words of Jurgen Klopp on the possibility of signing a new centre-back in the coming days after Joel Matip suffered yet another injury in the victory over Tottenham on Thursday.

The Cameroon international looks set to be sidelined for some time, joining both Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez in the treatment room. That leaves Nathaniel Phillips and Rhys Williams as the only natural centre-backs on the books, with Jordan Henderson and Fabinho filling in of late, leaving Klopp short of options in midfield.

Were it two weeks earlier in the window, there's seems little doubt Liverpool would make a move but it's certainly a real possibility regardless. As such the club will more than likely be exploring short term deals, but as Klopp stated they need to fit the style of play.

It’s come as a surprise to many that among the players the club are reportedly considering is Shkodran Mustafi, whose contract is winding down at Arsenal. The German has garnered a reputation in the Premier League for committing mistakes all too often, but needs must for Liverpool, and his experience of English football, coupled with his availability on the cheap has seemingly made him a contender.

Here we've picked out six potential alternatives to the much-maligned Mustafi, ranging from potential loan deals, bargain buys and investments in the future, starting with those whose contracts are also expiring in the summer. For the purposes of this piece we have assessed each player's league statistics since the start of last season (2019/20).

Soon to be free agents

Nikola Maksimovic (Napoli)

Linked with the Serbian international already this month, Maksimovic may well be a player the Reds are considering more seriously right now. The issue is the bit part player in Naples has been starting regularly for the club of late, so they would need a decent offer to let the 29-year-old leave.

Maksimovic is renowned for his distribution from the back, and Liverpool have undoubtedly missed that side of Van Dijk's game in his absence. He has both the best pass accuracy (93.6 per cent) and long ball accuracy (77.9 per cent) by a distance. His tackle and aerial success rates are relatively modest at 73.7 and 60 per cent respectively, and he's probably the least mobile of the players we've looked at, which could be a concern given the high line Liverpool play.

Aissa Mandi (Real Betis)

Another player that's more than comfortable playing out from the back, Mandi is also out of contract at the end of this season, though he remains a regular starter for Betis. The Algerian offers a goal threat from set pieces that again, Liverpool lack in Van Dijk's absence, but isn't overly strong in terms of aerial duels, with the lowest success rate (59.2 per cent) here. His range of passing isn't as strong as Maksimovic but Mandi does have more pace, as well as a stronger tackle success rate (77.2 per cent).

Aleksandar Dragovic (Bayer Leverkusen)

Probably the worst fit of the three players with expiring contracts here, Dragovic does at least have an admittedly limited experience of Premier League football to call upon. The Austrian started seven of 11 league appearances on loan at Leicester in 2017/18 but has failed to cement a regular starting berth at Bayer Leverkusen before or since. His distribution and range of passing is decent enough but defensively he's perhaps the most rash here, with the weakest tackle success (66.7 per cent) and highest proportion of fouls when attempting a tackle (40.9 per cent).

Ones for the future

Sven Botman (Lille)

A player Liverpool have been linked with for a matter of months now, the ease with which Botman's has stepped up from Dutch to French football and played a pivotal role in what is a serious title challenge at Lille has been impressive. The Premier League is another level entirely, of course, but the giant Dutchman is certainly one who could learn from Van Dijk, even in his compatriot's absence.

At 21, he's got plenty of top-flight experience and is excellent in the air, winning 72.8 per cent of his duels, whilst very impressive in terms of the timing of his tackling to boot. Indeed, Botman boasts the strongest tackle success rate (86.6 per cent) and commits the lowest proportion of fouls when attempting a tackle (11.3 per cent).

Nayef Aguerd (Rennes)

Staying in France, Aguerd is a player that has made impressive progress in his short time at Rennes. The Moroccan has completed the second most passes in Ligue 1 this season at an excellent 90.9 per cent success rate, though his range of distribution isn't quite so strong. That said, he's perhaps the most complete centre-back of those in this study, with a decent aerial success rate (65.1 per cent) and strong tackling numbers in terms of success (77.8 per cent) and timing, committing a foul with just 12.5 per cent of his attempts.

Long shot loan

Eder Militao (Real Madrid)

While he has had some minor injury problems this season, Militao is clearly a player that Zinedine Zidane remains unconvinced by. He's started just two league matches this season and 12 in total since arriving at the club, making his sample size less significant, but he's extremely quick and strong in both the air (73.3 per cent success) and the tackle (82.5 per cent success). His range of passing leaves a little to be desired but at 23, he needs to be playing more regularly to re-establish what is now a diminished reputation as one of the strongest young centre-backs in Europe.