Liverpool are running out of central defenders so quickly that they have been linked with a move for Sokratis but all may not be what it seems.

Arsenal's Greek defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos (L) vies with West Ham United's French striker Sebastien Haller (R) during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and West Ham at the Emirates Stadium in London on March 7, 2020.
Arsenal’s Greek defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos (L) vies with West Ham United’s French striker Sebastien Haller (R) during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and West Ham at the Emirates Stadium in London on March 7, 2020. (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images)

Liverpool are losing defenders at a rate normally seen at Arsenal. Virgil van Dijk’s knee is still recovering from meeting Jordan Pickford while Joe Gomez is also likely to miss the rest of the season with his own knee problem.

As such, the chances that Liverpool will move for a defender in the January window are quite high.

At Arsenal, Sokratis is out of contract next summer and out of Arsenal’s squad. The club tried to sell him during the last window but couldn’t get a deal completed.

I first came across the rumour linking Sokratis with a move to Liverpool on the German Sport1 site which claimed that the Greek defender could be set for a reunion with Jurgen Klopp. Both worked together at Borussia Dortmund.

The main problem, however, is that their source is the UK’s Daily Express which is just about as unreliable as it gets.

Reading the Express’s article, it is not a ‘link ‘at all, it is a journalist postulating that Liverpool need a central defender and Arsenal have a central defender they don’t want so wouldn’t that make a good move for all parties?

To be fair to the Express, it is the German outlet that makes the story seem more than it is

There is no indication at all that Liverpool are thinking of a move for Sokratis at this point. Whether that changes or not depends on how desperate Klopp’s side get.