With Manchester City currently trailing Liverpool by eight points in the Premier League title race, the expectation among those in the football world is that Pep Guardiola's side will look to invest in the January transfer market.
Following last season's historic treble, the expectation was that City and the Reds would once again go toe-to-toe in the title race, especially given the fact City edged out Klopp's side by a single point on the last day of the campaign last year.
But following shock defeats to Norwich and Wolves so far this season, Guardiola 's side are facing an uphill battle to make it a hat-trick of titles.
And as a result, City are now expected to improve in the upcoming window and defence is expected to be their area of focus - with Bournemouth's Nathan Ake the leading candidate.
Paddy Power has City at 3/1 to bring the former Chelsea man to the Etihad Stadium, with Ake being one of the standout star's in England's top-flight since joining Bournemouth in 2016.
Initially joining on loan from Chelsea, the Dutchman sealed a permanent move to the South Coast club a year later and has gone from strength to strength.
Linked with a move to Leicester in the summer as Harry Maguire's replacement, the Cherries were believed to be holding out for £80million, meaning any deal for the 24-year-old could come at a cost.
But with City currently enduring a defensive crisis following Aymeric Laporte's injury and Vincent Kompany's departure, it could well be a case of needs must.
