Aside from their defeat against Tottenham Hotspur, which came in controversial fashion, Liverpool have enjoyed a blistering start to the season, winning five of their seven Premier League games, and edging closer to their best.

That's not to say Jurgen Klopp won't welcome any further improvements come January or in next summer's transfer window, with the potential for Liverpool's squad to return to its title-battling best next season, if not before. And that could see them make their move for one particular star sooner than we think, with one agent revealing the price tag for one of the Reds' January transfer targets.

What's the latest Liverpool transfer news?

Having mainly focused on rebuilding their midfield during the summer transfer window, Liverpool arguably left themselves short in central defence, with just four experienced options at Klopp's disposal and young Jarell Quansah recently bursting onto the scene, impressing ever since.

With the injury history of Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, however, to say that the Reds could do with another centre-back wouldn't exactly be an outrageous shout. And that could be their focus in the January transfer window, particularly if Klopp's side find themselves in the thick of a title race.

With that said, a transfer update on Piero Hincapie has been provided by the defender's agent, who told Futbol Sin Casette, via Bolavip: “Liverpool were interested in him, but at that time they chose to invest in the midfield. For January, they are talking like other clubs, it will not be less than €50m (£43.3m).”

The Merseyside club were, of course, linked with the Bayer Leverkusen defender back in August, when German outlet Bild claimed that Klopp is a big fan of the defender. And, now, as confirmed by Hincapie's agent, Liverpool are once again eyeing a potential move, making the January transfer window all the more interesting.

How good is Piero Hincapie?

With Bayer Leverkusen heading into this weekend sitting on top of the Bundesliga and unbeaten after six games, it's fair to say that Hincapie and his side have got off to a flying start this season. The defender, having returned from suspension, has started in two of those six games, including in their 2-2 draw against champions Bayern Munich.

Statistically speaking, the central defender certainly looks impressive, too. According to FBref, Hincapie is in the top 5% of players in his position for progressive passes received, the top 6% for progressive carries and the top 14% for passes completed, highlighting just how much talent the Ecuador international has.

At just 21 years old, the Leverkusen man has done more than enough to earn plenty of praise, including from Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes, who said, via the official Bundesliga website: "Piero’s signing 18 months ago was an investment in the future, back then he was a talented central defender with really big potential. He became a key performer for our Werkself a long time ago, he has shown his international quality in the Bundesliga, in the Champions League and recently at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Piero is one of the key elements in the team who we can count on to help us achieve ambitious targets in the next few years."