Former Arsenal star and pundit Paul Merson says Liverpool should consider signing Wolves forward Raul Jimenez to step in during the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
The Reds are set to lose Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita for up to a month in January while they take part in the tournament in Cameroon.
Losing both Salah and Mane will be a huge blow for Jurgen Klopp as his side compete with Manchester City and Chelsea for this season's Premier League title.
While Liverpool are not expected to make any further additions to the squad in January, Merson believes Jimenez would make an ideal signing, for AFCON and beyond.
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"Liverpool need to sign a centre forward like Raul Jimenez in January - and not just as cover for the African Nations Cup either," he wrote in his column for the Daily Star.
"They need someone to come in while Sadio Mane and Mo Salah are away, yes. But I think they need someone for the future too.
"They need a player who can put pressure on the front three and help them win league titles consistently for the next few years. It's no good coming second for the next five years.
"Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino are very good players but I still think they need a proper centre-forward and if they brought in Jimenez he would play.
"He wouldn't need to play every week but he would get game time. Liverpool play so many games a season, and he could give them something different.
Liverpool have raided Wolves once before when they signed Jota in September last year, while Jimenez missed the majority of last term with a fractured skull.
Merson believes the pair's time together at Molineux would make it an ideal partnership at Liverpool.
He added: "He's a bigger version of Firmino who scores more goals. He can come short and has that vision. And he has played with Jota enough times at Wolves.
"I think he ticks the boxes. I think it's a nice signing that. He would come in and not kick up a stink if he isn't playing every week. That's what they need."
