John Aldridge identifies the player Liverpool should aim to sign next summer

Sunday World columnist Aldo have been urging Liverpool to make a defensive signing in this month's transfer window for several weeks, but he is convinced the man who can fire Liverpool back into top is a striker.

Borussia Dortmund forward Erling Haaland is the marksman Aldridge wants to see leading the Liverpool line next season, as he believes the prolific Norwegian is a perfect solution for Klopp.

"Roberto Firmino's form has been a concern for some time, so I would encourage Liverpool to do all they can to sign Erling Haaland next summer," he told us.

"Liverpool don't have a Plan B option in their forward line and as we have seen with their slump in form over the last few weeks, they don't have a back-up plan when Mo Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino are not firing.

"A player like Haaland would give them that variation and while he would cost in excess of £100m to sign from Dortmund, he is the man I'd like to see Liverpool go for.

"This lad looks to be the real deal and he has lived up to his hype time and again over the last year. He's strong, direct, great in the air and a brilliant finisher.

"On top of that, he is young and hungry, which is what Liverpool need in a team that has lost a little of its bite amid their current slump.

"Haaland has everything you look to be a top centre-forward and having him alongside Mane, Salah and Diogo Jota next season would give Liverpool a real chance to spring back into contention for the top trophies."

Liverpool's American owners have come under fire for their failure to back Klopp in this month's transfer window, after he confirmed he was keen to sign a defender this month to fill the void left by the injured duo of Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez.

Yet he is urging Liverpool to show real ambition by making a move for one of the most wanted young players in world football.

"Whether Liverpool's owners would sanction this kind of transfer is a different issue as they appear to be reluctant to spend money, even at a time when Klopp is crying out for a central defender," he added.

"Yet if you want to continue the kind of success the club has enjoyed over the last couple of seasons, you need to invest in the squad and this Liverpool team clearly needs a reboot after the results over the last month.

"We should not write them off as a team that has achieved so much can get back to their best as quickly as they have drifted away, but Klopp and the owners need to work together now to inject some life back into a team that appears to have lost some of its edge.

If a player of Haaland's stature arrived this summer, along with a top-class centre-back, it would confirm that Liverpool are ready to compete for the best players in the world.

"Without that level of investment, you wonder whether Klopp can continue to produce miracles on a budget that that is threadbare compared to the managers he is competing with."