It has been a tough old time for Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, with the German manager struggling for consistency with the Reds.

Throughout his reign, the Merseyside giants have shown patches of brilliance but have then squandered points at home to lower-level opposition.

His quest for silverware as Liverpool boss could go on for some time, as will his intention of mounting a serious Premier League title challenge.

However, one aspect of his management that cannot be questioned is his improvement of certain players in the squad.

The likes of Roberto Firmino, Adam Lallana and Sadio Mane have all thrived in the German's system.

But, the one player who has arguably improved the most is his countryman, Emre Can.

CAN THE MAN

The former Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen man has become a man mountain in his midfield and has shown his prowess at scoring goals this season.

Throughout the summer, Can was courted by Juventus but fortunately for Liverpool, no deal materialised.

Nevertheless, the fear was that the German's contract runs out next summer, meaning Juve would be free to negotiate with him in January.

A new deal was said to be in the making but, as revealed by Daily Mail journalist Dominic King, that looks almost certain not to happen.

CAN WAS DESPERATE FOR A RELEASE CLAUSE

The reason for the stand-off was that the 23-year-old had demanded a release clause in his contract, something which is incredibly common these days.

However, Liverpool as a club do not implement such clauses and said they were unwilling to make Can a special case and now, he will almost certainly leave in the summer.

For now though, he has said he is fully focused on helping Klopp's side progress in the Champions League.

"We are in a very good position,' said Can. "But we have two tough games and we want to try and win them to be in the Champions League next year."

NABY KEITA THE SOLACE FOR SUPPORTERS

The only silver lining for Liverpool is that they have a ready-made replacement arriving next summer from RB Leipzig.

While fans would have loved to have seen Can and Keita together in midfield, the Guinean should be able to fill the void left.

Nevertheless, it is a huge blow and it will mean that Klopp has no choice but to persist with the uninspiring Jordan Henderson.