Leeds United's hopes of re-signing Brighton & Hove Albion centre-back Ben White this summer could be scuppered by newly-crowned Premier League champions Liverpool.
The defender, who had not played at Championship level before this season, excelled for the Whites under Marcelo Bielsa's stewardship, with the 22-year-old proving to be, for many, the Whites' Player of the Season.
Following the conclusion of the regular Championship campaign on Wednesday evening, which saw the Whites finally lay their hands on the Championship trophy, White has now returned to the Amex Stadium, with Brighton boss Graham Potter no doubt planning to include the defender in his first-team plans ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
Whilst Potter and Brighton will be desperate to keep hold of White this summer, they are probably already bracing themselves for a wave of transfer offers to come their way.
Whilst Leeds are very keen on bringing him back to Elland Road, the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United, who will all travel to Elland Road for a league fixture for the first time in 16 years next season, of course, are also interested in White.
And Liverpool, who finally got their hands on a trophy of their own earlier this week, lifting the Premier League title after beating Chelsea 5-3 at Anfield, are poised to step up their interest in White, with a report from The Times claiming that defender Dejan Lovren is poised to leave the club.
The Croatian centre-back, who joined the Reds from Southampton in July 2014, is close to sealing a £10.9million move to Russian giants Zenit St Petersburg.
Should the deal go through, Lovren's departure from Anfield will leave manager Jurgen Klopp with just three seasoned centre-back options in Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, meaning the Reds will almost certainly want to add another option to his defensive line.
Should Liverpool make a formal offer for White, the Brighton defender may not be so keen on the idea of a switch to Anfield, as the likelihood of him getting regular, first-team football is unlikely.
That could be a boost to Leeds, as if they were able to to strike a deal with the Seagulls he would be guaranteed a starting berth at Elland Road.
