LiverpoolEXCLUSIVE : Liverpool perfect January includes £100m Newcastle star after £415m flop window

Liverpool only spent £414.5million last summer, so they obviously have to splash even more cash when the transfer window re-opens in January.

Somehow, after signing players such as Alexander Isak, Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz, the Reds are out of the title race by December. They will enter the winter window knowing they’re firmly in season-saving territory.

Spending big on players from Newcastle United, Bournemouth and Bayer Leverkusen worked so well before, we think it makes perfect sense for Liverpool to do it again at the earliest possible opportunity.

Here are four winter signings we think would make a perfect window for the stumbling champions…

Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth)

This is the no-brainer. This is the banker. This is the one that couldn’t fail. This is the one that’s never failed. Well, that’s what we thought about Isak, and look how that turned out.

Semenyo doesn’t have to be another Isak, nor does he have to suffer the same fate as his former Bournemouth teammate Milos Kerkez. But there will be a different kind of pressure on him to succeed, as he’d be joining on a rescue mission rather than for a colossal fee after a controversial saga.

The Ghanaian has started the season strongly, registering six goals and three assists in 13 Premier League appearances so far, and the emergence of a £65million release clause in his contract pricked the ears of the Premier League elite, particularly Tottenham, Manchester City and Liverpool.

It should be a matter of who caves first and triggers the release clause. There will be no negotiation with Bournemouth. It’s £65m or don’t bother. And judging by Semenyo’s performances this season, they should bother.

Semenyo would come in as someone capable of taking the load off Mohamed Salah, who might need a rest and the competition to regain his form. He’s also capable of playing anywhere across the frontline and looks like a real difference-maker. Liverpool look like they need someone capable of taking games by the scruff of the neck. He’s right here.

Transfer fee: £65m

Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace)

Liverpool completely f**ked it in the summer when they decided to wait until deadline day to agree a fee with Crystal Palace for Marc Guehi. They gave Palace little time to replace their best and most influential player, who also happens to captain them, and when Igor Julio chose West Ham over them (bizarre decision, but an argument for another day), they had made a bigger error than anyone could have imagined.

As Ibrahima Konate has performed so poorly that he’s managed to drag Virgil van Dijk down with him, Guehi has been consistent as ever at the back for the Eagles and England. It was the biggest c*ck-up any Premier League club made in the summer and somehow outweighed all the (apparent) good Liverpool did. We didn’t know that at the time, but Liverpool would be in a better spot had Guehi joined and been available to step in for a woefully out-of-form Konate.

The Reds can right that wrong in the January transfer window, but will probably be even more reluctant to pay Palace a fee as Guehi will be in the final six months of his contract. That’s tantalisingly close to being a free transfer for Liverpool, but unlike their foreign counterparts, they’re not allowed to negotiate a pre-contract agreement from January 1. That gives Real Madrid a significant edge, and after they dropped their interest in Konate, there’s a strong chance they snap him up.

Guehi solves a lot of problems for Liverpool, and even if he’s available for nothing in the summer, they need to bite the bullet next month.