Club now expect Liverpool will try to sign their £35m player in the January transfer window

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TBR Football understands that Crystal Palace are expecting Liverpool to make a return for Marc Guehi in January after losing Giovanni Leoni.

Leoni is unlikely to play again this season after damaging his ACL against Southampton in the Carabao Cup which means the Reds’ resources are now stretched in central defence.

Liverpool almost signed Guehi in a £35 million deal on deadline day, only for Crystal Palace to pull the plug on the move – but the Merseyside giants always had plans to come back for him in 2026.

Now Palace sources have informed TBR Football that the club fully expect Liverpool to make a play for Guehi in January.

The England international has already made it clear to Palace that he is leaving the club in 2026 – but it now remains to be seen whether it will be January or the summer.

We understand that Palace chief Steve Parish is ready to sell, but as with the summer – when head coach Oliver Glasner convinced Parish not to sell, he still does not want the club to lose their captain this season.

Exclusive: Crystal Palace expect Liverpool bid for Marc Guehi

Chief correspondent Graeme Bailey has exclusively revealed to TBR Football that while widespread speculation has suggested Liverpool could return for Guehi, Palace are now expecting a January offer.

Bailey states: “Palace believe that Liverpool are going to make a January move for Guehi. They said no on deadline day, but they will say no again – I don’t think it can be ruled out that they let him leave.”

Liverpool are also aware that the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich are all lining up offers to lure Guehi on a free transfer, but TBR Football understands that the Premier League champions are confident he will opt for Anfield.

Arne Slot now only has three senior central defenders at Anfield after Leoni’s injury, two of whom are facing uncertain long-term futures.

As revealed by TBR Football, Premier League rivals are monitoring Ibrahima Konate, whose contract is set to expire at the end of the season. However, as things stand, the Reds are intent on tying down the Frenchman to a new deal before January.

Whereas Joe Gomez left a lot to be desired during his first start to the season against Southampton. As the club’s longest serving player was outshone by Leoni, and despite remaining at Anfield, was widely expected to leave Liverpool this summer.

Leoni’s injury means Liverpool are increasingly likely to sign a defender in the winter transfer window, with Guehi not the only centre-back on the radar at Anfield.

What Arne Slot said about Giovanni Leoni’s injury

Indeed, all the signs post-Southampton are pointing to Liverpool being active in January to ease the growing concerns at centre-back.

Slot has short-term options who can operate in the backline if needed, but as widely reported, he has been adamant that he requires two top-quality options in every position to remain competitive.

The Dutchman shared the latest update on Leoni’s condition in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Crystal Palace clash, confirming the defender will be sidelined for the rest of the season.

“The first thing, he’s not in a good place, of course, because he tore his ACL, which means that he will be out for around a year.

“So, uh, being so young, coming to a new country, playing so well in your first game, it’s very hard to take the positive side. No, there’s never a positive side, but yeah, you always try to look at a positive side, and that is that he’s still so young, so that he has so many years still to go after he recovers from a terrible injury like that.”