The dream free transfer Liverpool can seal in January to land 'invincible' Virgil van Dijk successor

There are a host of big-name players entering the last year of their contract across Europe, and several of them will be staples of the gossip column for months to come – and one of them in particular, Jonathan Tah, will be linked repeatedly with a move to just about every big Premier League club until he makes a decision on his future.

The Bayer Leverkusen and Germany centre-back has established himself as one of the best defenders on the continent in recent years. However, he’s yet to accept a new deal with Xabi Alonso’s side - who went unbeaten as they won the Bundesliga last season - with all of the usual suspects alleged to be making overtures towards him in the hope of getting an elite defender for free in a year’s time. But of all the teams in the English top flight supposedly keen on securing his services, which would actually make sense for him?

The 28-year-old is noted primarily for two things – firstly, his poise on the ball and his accurate passing, which make him one of the best playmaking defenders in the world and would make him a natural fit for a team that wants to control possession or spring counter-attacks, and secondly his immense physical presence. Standing at 6’4” and with serious strength and speed in his locker, he must be intimidating to play against.

Despite his impressive presence, however, he isn’t naturally suited to play in a deep line and isn’t at his best in close quarters situations in packed boxes or with minimal room to manoeuvre. Partly, that’s because while his top speed is exceptionally high for a centre-back, he doesn’t have the quickest burst of acceleration over a short distance – so in a race chasing back to cover a ball over the top, he will often win, but inside the penalty area a sharp forward can gain half a yard on him with late movement and get the separation they need to finish without being bullied off the ball.

In other words, any team that plays a low block in defence would be well-advised to look for a different type of player – a side like Manchester United, who play with the deepest defensive line of any of the traditional Premier League powerhouses, simply doesn’t seem like a logical destination for a player who thrives playing further upfield, as he does at current club Leverkusen.

That could mean a side like Newcastle United makes sense. Under Eddie Howe they have generally pushed well up the pitch and played a pressing game which asks their defenders to look for accurate passes into the front line whenever possible, which is something Tah excels at – in the Bundesliga last season, a towering 81% of his long passes were accurate. He can play economical football and help a team control possession, but he also has the technique and ball skills to beat the press and the passing range to get the ball moving downfield at speed.

Newcastle also need a new centre-back after they failed to get a deal for Crystal Palace’s Marc Guéhi over the line before transfer deadline day – but Tah being the right man for the job may depend on whether they actually play with the high defensive line Howe is usually known for. It may just be an anomaly created by a few slightly off-key performances early in the season, but Newcastle’s line has, on average, been around four and a half metres deeper than it was last season. If that doesn’t sound like a huge change, it’s the difference between having the sixth-highest line in the league and the third deepest. Only Brentford and Ipswich Town have had their defences pinned back deeper.

If the type of team that gets the best out of Tah is one which pushes high and gives defenders free rein to play out from the back and get the ball forward, then one option really stands out – Liverpool. And with Virgil van Dijk’s contract coming to an end and the departed Joël Matip as yet unreplaced, Arne Slot may well be keen to get their hands on a play like Tah.

Since Slot took charge, Liverpool have attempted more long balls than all but four teams in the league and played with the fourth-highest defensive line - for those keeping count, the only teams with higher lines so far this season are Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion, teams who arguably have less of a pressing need for a centre-back or have at least been focussing their energy elsewhere. Tah seems like a solid fit for the possession-based but pressing and progressive style that the Dutch manager utilises, and has the quality to be a strong long-term replacement for Van Dijk if he leaves or simply declines over the coming years.

Ultimately, Tah is a superb defender and one who would get into the starting eleven of most top tier clubs, but not every side will be looking to dish out some pretty hefty wages to a centre-half next summer. Liverpool might well be in the market for a player with the German’s profile, however, and he seems like a natural fit for their side. Still, a great deal could change in a year, and Tah himself may have other ideas – Bayern Munich were strongly linked with a transfer which never materialised, for instance, and he may prefer to stay in his home country. But Liverpool have been linked with him, and he could be precisely what they need as the move forward through the Post-Klopp Era at Anfield.