Rodrigo De Paul was a major target for Leeds United last summer.

The club were heavily linked with a move for the Udinese playmaker, with Marcelo Bielsa’s side seemingly identifying the midfielder as a key target.

Leeds were reported to have made a bid worth €35m (£30m), though Udinese were holding out for €40m (£34.4m).

They never bridged the gap and now it seems that Liverpool could come in with a bid of their own.

Sport Witness carries a report from Sport Mediaset claiming that Jurgen Klopp believes the Argentine could be a key member of a summer rebuild.

De Paul is a central midfielder who can also play in attacking midfield and he has made 22 appearances in Serie A this season, scoring five goals and laying on three assists.

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Klopp is said to believe that the midfielder can be the player which he builds a team around; the report states that the German is “crazy” about him.

Georginio Wijnaldum, of course, has a contract that expires in the summer and De Paul could come in as his replacement.

Udinese are not said to be against his departure, and a deal worth £34.4m could work on both sides.

GIVEMESPORT’S Harry Sherlock says…

De Paul is, to put it simply, absolutely brilliant.

Per fbref, he averages 2.6 shots per 90, 0.29 expected assists, 4.61 shot-creating actions, 10.02 progressive carries, 2.45 dribbles completed, 2.51 touches in the attacking penalty area, 4.7 progressive passes received, and 6.62 progressive passes.

All of those numbers place him in the top 10% of midfielders in Europe.

The second-most similar player to De Paul, according to the website, is Kevin de Bruyne, perhaps the best player in the Premier League at his best.

Leeds have missed out on a superstar; Liverpool should pull out all the stops to get him in.