The Liverpool fans here in the Transfer Tavern are hoping their main man Jurgen Klopp can replace former fan favourite Philippe Coutinho within the team this window.

Liverpool seem to be leaning towards bringing the deal for Naby Keita forward from the summer move, which was originally agreed between the clubs during the summer of 2017. However, the sticking point remains that RB Leipzig would demand more money to let one of their stars of the season go early, and potentially risk upsetting the team’s current momentum.

If that situation doesn’t work out, Klopp may look elsewhere for a short-term fix to paper over the cracks left by Coutinho. Although the third and favourable option for many of the bar staff and regulars in the pub last night is to trust in the squad he has and instil some confidence in a few players that will hopefully pay tenfold and come good this season.

Klopp has an embarrassing amount of attacking options to hand, and our landlord believes that these two players can make the step up this season in the Brazilian’s absence…

Adam Lallana

The England man has been on the injury comeback trail for the past few months, and with Coutinho out of the picture, it may give the former Southampton man a chance to shine in his own right.

The creative midfielder can do a good a job as any before him. With the right kind of chances given to him, he could really be the player that will keep Liverpool’s season going on its current trajectory. Klopp will look to his players that he trusts and none come more trusted than Lallana.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Under Klopp, ‘The Ox’ has steadily improved this season after becoming a little stale at Arsenal. The move seems to have re-invigorated Chamberlain and he’ll be hoping that following the Coutinho move, his first-team chances start to increase.

Has he builds up his stock ready for the World Cup squad in the summer, so Chamberlain will be out to impress both club and country in the second half of the season, as he bids to show that he can fill Coutinho’s boots and that they don’t need to bring Keita in earlier than anticipated.