For Florian Wirtz, Philippe Coutinho is arguably the benchmark at Liverpool when it comes to modern-day attacking midfielders, the Brazilian having been immense during his Anfield pomp.
Coutinho, sold on to Barcelona on a £142m deal, knows all about being weighed down by a price tag and expectation, with it fair to say he’s never got close again to the player who dazzled on Merseyside.
In Wirtz’s case, the 23-year-old was the talismanic figure back at Bayer Leverkusen, yet his own big-money move has backfired thus far, the Reds yet to see the best of their £116m-rated playmaker.
His recent woes do beg the question – will Liverpool sign another number ten in January?
Should Liverpool sign a player to rival Wirtz in January?
Let’s face it, it was a forgettable first season in English football for the German, rounding things off with just eight goals and assists to his name in the Premier League.
For a man who had reached double figures for each of those two metrics across each of his last two Bundesliga campaigns, the drop off has been stark in a Liverpool shirt.
New boss Andoni Iraola has persisted with him thus far in the early weeks of 2026/27, although Wirtz has just a solitary assist to show for it, leading to calls from the likes of Jamie Carragher to oust him from the starting lineup.
The problem is, the Reds don’t appear to have a standout alternative in that number ten berth, having notably sent Harvey Elliott out on loan again to Valencia.
Dominik Szoboszlai, by his own admission, is at his best in a box-to-box number eight role, leaving Iraola a little light on options to partner Alexander Isak in attack.
There have been whispers that Barcelona’s Dani Olmo could be on the agenda heading into 2027, as the Reds seek reinforcements, although FSG could well target someone more in the Coutinho mould instead.
How Liverpool could sign the new Coutinho in January
Coutinho’s departure came in January 2018, amid something of a sliding-doors moment for the Jurgen Klopp era, while he’d also arrived at the club in the winter window five years earlier.
The Reds, then managed by Brendan Rodgers, had forked out around £8.5m to pluck the 20-year-old from Inter Milan, with a certain Daniel Sturridge also arriving mid-season too.
Coutinho, particularly then, was small and slight, yet his quality shone through immediately, racking up ten goals and assists the following season as Liverpool so nearly claimed a first Premier League title.
|
Coutinho – Premier League Career |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Games |
Goals (Assists) |
|
23/24 |
2 |
0 (0) |
|
22/23 |
20 |
1 (0) |
|
21/22 |
19 |
5 (3) |
|
17/18 |
14 |
7 (6) |
|
16/17 |
31 |
13 (7) |
|
15/16 |
26 |
8 (5) |
|
14/15 |
35 |
5 (5) |
|
13/14 |
33 |
5 (5) |
|
12/13 |
13 |
3 (0) |
Allowing him that first six months to bed in was no doubt a wise move, with there a chance for Iraola and co to now repeat that trick with the signing of Gilberto Mora.
As per TEAMtalk, Liverpool are the leading contenders, within the Premier League, to sign the Mexican teenager, with the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United also in the mix.
Both Borussia Dortmund and Benfica have held talks with his agent, although the Anfield side have opened negotiations of their own, after making direct contact with his representatives.
Still only 17, Mora will be able to move to Europe after he turns 18 later this month, opening the door to a potential January or summer move.
The Club Tijuana playmaker would fetch a Liga MX record fee if he were to leave, somewhere north of £21m, although like in the case of Coutinho, that could represent something of a bargain considering his sky-high potential.
Unsurprisingly, given his age, Mora is another rather waiflike, diminutive talent, but he’s already making waves at senior level, viewed as the next star of Mexican football.
He was notably part of this summer’s World Cup squad for the hosts, reinforcing why he is considered “one of the most exciting young talents in world football“, in the view of journalist Graeme Bailey.
He is certainly among the most highly-rated teenagers or wonderkids out there right now, having only recently scored his first goal for his country against Peru over the international break.
Like Coutinho, he pops up in the pocket, arguably at his best as a number ten yet also particularly comfortable off the left, cutting inside to wreak havoc from range.
In seven Liga MX appearances this season, he’s already scored five goals and assisted one, notably averaging 1.2 key passes per game and one successful dribble per game.
His nimble and agile, prolific and creative, seemingly boasting all the qualities that made Coutinho such a force at his best.
While patience will be needed considering his youth, Mora could well be the man to challenge Wirtz in the long term at Anfield.