LIVERPOOL midfielder Alexis Mac Allister is a target for Real Madrid.
But the Spanish giants are preparing to swoop for the Argentinian World Cup winner next year.
Reports in Argentina claim there has already been contact between Real and Liverpool but no firm offer has been received at Anfield.
And it is thought the Spanish title winners and Champions League finalists see Mac Allister as the man to fill the gap when long-serving midfielders Luka Modric and Toni Kroos leave the Bernabeu.
Real are currently in talks with Modric about extending his stay in Madrid by another year.
The Croatian maestro, who will turn 39 in September, is said to be happy to accept a lower salary in order to take his spell at the club into a 13th season.
Kroos is also in talks with Real, in his case about a one-year extension that would keep him there until 2025.
Mac Allister joined Liverpool from Brighton for an initial £40m last year, in a deal that could be worth up to £52m.
The Argentinian press claim he has a release clause of around £60m that Real or any other club could activate.
Mac Allister has made 32 Premier League appearances for the Reds this term, and 45 in all competitions.
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He has been a key component of Jurgen Klopp‘s new-look midfield, scoring four Prem goals and laying on five assists.
With Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita having departed last summer, Klopp has had to embed an entirely new engine room.
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In addition to Mac Allister, the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch have had big parts to play.
Klopp is set for his emotional Anfield farewell tomorrow, as Liverpool take on Wolves.
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