Jurgen Klopp has been lauded by Liverpool fans after the Reds emerged as the frontrunners in the race to snap up Brighton midfielder Alexis Mac Allister.
The Anfield chief is known to be in the market for midfield reinforcements after vowing to overhaul his engine room at the end of the campaign.
Many fans expected Jude Bellingham to be the club's marquee summer signing after being linked with the talented teenager for the last 12 months. However, once Klopp made it clear that Liverpool were not going to pursue the Borussia Dortmund star last month, he and the Anfield hierarchy have been heavily criticised in some quarters.
Bellingham is now believed to be on the cusp of a blockbuster £120million switch to Real Madrid, with talks an advanced stage. Klopp and Liverpool, meanwhile, are not hanging around and are now seemingly in pole position to acquire Mac Allister - a move which has gone down very well with excited fans on social media.
According to The Mail, Brighton players expected the 25-year-old to move to Anfield sooner rather than later, despite interest from several rival clubs.
And the possibility of striking a quick deal for the World Cup winner has appeased Liverpool fans who were less than impressed when it became clear that Bellingham, who had been mooted as the club's top transfer target for close to two years, would not be attainable.
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Mac Allister has been expected to move on from Brighton in the summer for months. Speaking back in April, his father, Carlos, revealed that private transfer talks had already begun.
He told Puro Boca: "Normally the next [transfer window] will find him playing in another institution, we don't know which one. The talks are just beginning in general, but it is most likely that Alexis will already be playing in another team next July."
If Liverpool do agree terms with Brighton for Mac Allister, the Argentina star is likely to be the first acquisition in a busy summer transfer window for Liverpool, who are also targeting deals for Chelsea talisman Mason Mount and Bayern Munich 's Ryan Gravenberch.
It remains to be seen how much a deal for Mac Allister, who is contracted to the Seagulls until the summer of 2025 after signing a new deal before the World Cup, would cost Liverpool.
After failing to revamp their midfield last year, the Reds have struggled to emulate their 2021/22 campaign, where they came agonisingly close to landing an unprecedented quadruple.
This term, Klopp's side have struggled: Champions League qualification is far from guaranteed after a rotten run of results. The Reds are currently fifth in the Premier League standings, four points behind Manchester United, who have played a game less.
