Liverpool now only have ONE solution to no.9 problem and he's PERFECT | OneFootball

Gyokeres looks set to be Liverpool's new No. 9

Just a few weeks ago, Anfield Watch assessed the different strikes available on the market and identified that Sporting's Viktor Gyokeres would be the idea candidate to become Liverpool's new No. 9.

His £55m release cause is particularly reasonable for a 27-year-old who has a prolific track record of goalscoring, both in Portugal and in England's second tier, no one seems to be looking at him.

35 goals and 13 assists in the 2023/24 season, and 52 goals and 12 assists in his last campaign. This is including his efforts in Europe's premier competition - the Champions League.

He's an incredible finisher and simply a rare opportunity in the market, which is scarce for talent.

Sooner rather than later, Liverpool will need to make a decision about if they want to sign a striker this summer and who exactly that striker might be.

Liam Delap made a swift move from Ipswich to Chelsea last week and Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt is also favoured to move in the same direction, Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig is now having advanced discussions with Arsenal over a potential move, and Victor Osimhen is now scheduled to have a medical with Al Hilal, so he's also off the cards.

Apart from Delap who had a £30m release clause, the other three had hurdles that Liverpool might not have been comfortable jumping over. Ekitike, for example, is unlikely to move for under €100m (£84m), Sesko is valued at £92.5m and Osimhen is said to have been after extraordinary wages.

We're now in a problematic position. It has been further emphasised that Joao Pedro is available at Brighton, but dream signings such as Julian Alvarez at Atletico Madrid and Alexander Isak at Newcastle are set to be off the market. The options are seemingly extremely limited.

It was reported a couple of days ago that 'more names will emerge in the next weeks' if a striker is in fact on the shopping list after all, but we've allowed ourselves to be bypassed by other teams.

Once the signings of Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez are finalised alongside Jeremie Frimpong, the club's business for the remainder of the summer will be fascinating to watch.

Other positions are still in need of recruitment and the options in the striker department at least are slim pickings right now.

But in Gyokeres, there remains an obvious solution and one the Reds should look to explore. Because he is pretty much perfect for what Liverpool are looking for right now.

He is a pure goal threat and if Liverpool want a striker who scores goals, they will not find anyone better.