Liverpool desperately need a centre-back after Virgil van Dijk's season-ending injury last month.
Jurgen Klopp now has limited options at the back.
Joe Gomez and Joel Matip are Liverpool's only two first team centre backs.
Fabinho has been used for cover, while Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams have also been used in recent weeks.
But it's an area that needs to be strengthened and Klopp will be looking to delve into the transfer market in January.
One name they have been linked with is Bayern Munich's David Alaba.
“He is a player any club in the world would love, and Liverpool and City have made it known that if he wants to come to England they will be interested, but they have made it clear they don’t want to be involved if he does not want to come to play in the Premier League," a source told 90min.com earlier this week.
However, it appears that the Bayern star will not be moving to Merseyside this January.
According to Bild, Hansi Flick wants to keep Alaba for as long as possible.
Despite his contract running out next summer, Bayern will not let Alaba leave in the January transfer market for any sort of money.
They will rather let him leave for free in the summer.
GIVEMESPORT'S JAMES STROUD SAYS:
That's a big blow to Liverpool. Alaba is a world-star and would be an ideal replacement for Van Dijk while he's on the sidelines.
But it appears he will not be available in January.
In my opinion, it would be worth Liverpool playing the waiting game for the Austrian defender.
Liverpool's sporting director Michael Edwards has shown patience in the transfer market before.
In the summer of 2017, Liverpool tried hard to sign Virgil van Dijk but came up short in their attempts.
But Edwards was undeterred and signed the Dutchman a few months later. He resisted the urge to sign an alternative to Van Dijk and look how that decision turned out.
Edwards would be wise to play the waiting game again. Alaba is a talent worth waiting for and it would be a massive coup if they get him in the summer.
Him and Van Dijk would be a monstrous partnership at the back when the former is fully fit once again.