The battle for Jude Bellingham’s signature is going to be one of the storylines of 2023 and Liverpool are being strongly linked as this World Cup plays out.

They have a sales pitch to tempt almost any player in the world to join and would love the England midfielder’s ink on the dotted line - but Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea have always admired him and Real Madrid love him, too. Sources say they lead the race at this early stage but a little twist is that even Borussia Dortmund still want to sign him again!

With two years remaining on Bellingham’s contract from the summer, they have always intended to reward the player for his progress with a new deal and are ready to speak to him about that later in the season.

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His value has been skyrocketing and his price tag will be heading towards the £150million mark on the back of this World Cup. It’s a huge rise on the £25m they paid for him when signing from Birmingham City in 2020.

It’s not unthinkable that he remains at Dortmund a little longer. His family - who have helped guide his career - have loved Germany and what it has done for him. It is a great place to be improving as a player and a person and from an England perspective it might not be bad that he stays a little longer, given the European Championship takes place there in 18 months.

Liverpool have wanted Bellingham a long time. He’s been the best players in his age group every year for as long as most scouts and coaches in his area can remember.

Yet if they don’t sign Bellingham in 2023, who do they turn to? Here we list some of the leading candidates and grab some insight over just what we can gauge from their situations right now…

Declan Rice

Let’s start with the man that has been partnering him in England’s midfield, as he has to come under consideration if Bellingham proves to be out of reach.

Rice is almost certain to leave West Ham this summer and it is looking increasingly like his price-tag is more reachable than at any point in the recent past. It has been reported that £70m could be enough to seal the signing of Rice and Liverpool would be a serious consideration for the player if they reach out.

Chelsea are seen as strong favourites for Rice yet the player has indicated to people around him that moving out of London would not faze him. Liverpool’s success and history could appeal and while he might not seem like quite same same player as Bellingham, he has huge drive to become the all-round midfielder. He has already proven he is more than just a DM and had spent plenty of time studying the likes of Yaya Toure and Patrick Vieira in search of becoming the perfect midfield player.

Moises Caicedo

Brighton do not want to lose their Ecuador midfielder any time soon - shown by the player's reported £85m price tag - but his rise both domestically and internationally this season has not gone unnoticed and Liverpool do have him on the radar.

At the age of 21 there is time to further sculpt him into any type of midfielder they might need. He can sit, he can charge, he can do it all.

Caicedo signed for Albion at the end of the winter transfer window in 2021 and while he has spent time on loan in Belgium since then, his performances in the Premier League are convincing scouts that he is going to become one of the best midfield players in the world.

He has the engine of a Bellingham but he also has a great ability to control games and one of the decisions the Liverpool recruiters must determine is how soon they need to move if he is to become a signing.

He won’t come cheap - Brighton will demand more than the £60million they received from Chelsea for Marc Cucurella. But if Bellingham doesn’t join this is one they have to consider.

Enzo Fernandez

Liverpool are monitoring him at Benfica this season and have been aware of his profile for some time. He is not quite the all-round midfielder they might be looking for but what he does do is take charge of midfield battles in the way he commands play.

One source revealed Liverpool have sent scouts to watch him but added that other clubs from around Europe also have eyes on the player with a €120m (£100m) release clause every week.

There is a general feeling that he will not be attainable just yet, that he will develop in Portugal a little longer before taking his pick of European giants.

Konrad Laimer

He is probably off limits now that Bayern Munich are making a move for him but Laimer has been on the agenda a while.

There had been hope that he would become open to the idea of a move to the Premier League in 2023 but the temptation of remaining in Bundesliga by switching to Bavaria from RB Leipzig.

His hard-working style gives us an idea of what will be needed from any new addition and in Germany he has become known as the 'Pressing Machine' due to his non-stop closing down ability.

Mohammed Kudus

With Ajax and Ghana, Kudus is earning admirers, and Liverpool have an eye on him. He is not really the Bellingham alternative but he is an alternative for the midfield.

He has great ball-carrying traits and can work hard as a box-to-box midfielder yet it is expected he will become more of an advanced player that thrives in the attacking third.

Definitely keep an eye on him from a Liverpool point of view, but this one might be an extra addition if it ends up taking shape.