Blink and you would have missed it. There was a rare moment in football on Wednesday. Kalvin Phillips starting for Manchester City…and he even scored!

It’s probably the last few minutes Kalvin Phillips will play for Manchester City because he is now being tipped to move in the January transfer window, with Liverpool a target.

Darren Bent thinks the England international would start for Jurgen Klopp’s side and he would ‘jump at the chance’ of playing for Liverpool, as he told talkSPORT.

Whilst Manchester City have been in a league of their own for years and years now, if any team has been able to get near them or beat them, then it’s those from Anfield.

And many think that the Reds just need another defensive-minded midfielder and they can really start challenging and winning trophies again.

That’s probably why it’s a surprise that Liverpool, who aren’t at 100% in terms of performances, are sitting top of the Premier League table.

Add in another number 6 and things could get interesting, with Kalvin Phillips scoring during Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Red Star in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Kalvin Phillips to Liverpool?

“He is leaving Manchester City in January,” said Bent. “Last season, he won the Treble, so his trophy cabinet is stacked.

“But it has to get to a point where he has to play football. As you said, he just turned 28. He isn’t at the back end of his career because football can now go onto the mid-30s and beyond that.

“It might be a step-down, not in terms of the size of the club you are playing for. The team you are going to be involved in and the closest one to that is Liverpool because they have the next best manager.

“I enjoyed it when he was at Leeds, a very good player – What top club does he start for? You have Endo, so he could do. If he got that option, then he would jump at the chance.”

Would Manchester City sell to Liverpool?

It would be interesting to see how Manchester City would react if a team in and around them, or in this case, one sitting top of the league, would want one of their players.

Previously, Pep Guardiola has hinted that it wouldn’t be an issue, so from that perspective, they should be happy to sell.

But they would make Klopp’s side stronger, bulk up the midfield and squad. And, most importantly, increase the club’s chances of winning the title.

Either way, with the January transfer window set to open, this could be an interesting one to watch out for.

Liverpool have joined rivals Everton scouting Hoffenheim’s rising Bundesliga star Maximilian Beier and the Premier League giants can land him for £25 million due to a release clause in his contract. 

When the talented centre-forward signed a new contract with Hoffenheim in October, it seemed as if we could draw a line through his name, speculation over Maximilian Beier’s future seemingly placed on the backburner.

Well, not quite.

That new contract did remove a £17 million release clause but replaced it with one worth £25 million. When you factor that in, Hoffenheim tying Beier down to a new deal feels more like an attempt to protect his value and ensure that, if or when the striker leaves, he will go for a fee befitting his potential.

Everton are keeping tabs on the powerhouse 21-year-old, per BILD. So too, it appears, are the club based on the other side of Stanley Park.

Liverpool join Everton in Maximilian Beier chase

“(Beier has a) release clause of around 30 million euros (for the) summer,” Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg writes on X. “Many top clubs inquired about him and are informed about contractual details. Liverpool are interested.

“The current trend (is that) the 21-year-old striker will leave Hoffenheim in summer.”

Beier, an old-school throwback of a number nine perhaps in the Erling Haaland mould, has already reached double figures for goals and assists this term. He’s scored six times and set up another four in 15 Hoffenheim appearances.

Beier, who has been considered for a senior Germany call-up by Julian Nagelsmann, would be hard pressed securing regular first-team football in England however. At Liverpool, he would have Darwin Nunez for competition. At Everton, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and £25 million summer signing Beto are already battling for a place in Sean Dyche’s frontline.

A Merseyside battle for Bundesliga ace

“It’s important for him to even get into positions where he can shoot,” says Beier’s Hoffenheim coach Pellegrino Matarazzo (FT). “He can manage that thanks to his dynamism and technique.

“You either have those genes or you don’t, and Maxi has those genes to score goals.”