According to the Express, Liverpool are set to battle some of their Premier League rivals for Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey this summer, and he could be the man to help Jurgen Klopp plan for life after Sadio Mane.

What’s the word?

It is claimed that the Reds hold interest in the wide man along with Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea with Frank Lampard’s men looking like the current front-runners.

The Blues boss is lining up a reported bid of £85m after scouts witnessed his performance first-hand against Rangers in the Europa League last week.

However, Bailey has three years left to run on his current contract at the Bundesliga outfit but the club would rather sell to the Premier League than allow him to leave for another keen party in league rivals Bayern Munich.

Bundesliga hotshot

The Jamaican is one of the hottest prospects in the German top-flight at the minute as he has shown multiple times this season.

Across all competitions, Bailey has scored seven goals and provided one assist, and in addition to the above European tie, the winger excelled against Bayern back in November.

He helped steer his side to a 2-1 victory over their division rivals by netting a 25-minute brace early in the first half.

Watch Liverpool Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

The 22-year-old outshone home substitute and former Liverpool playmaker Coutinho in the match too, picking up an 8.2 rating by SofaScore after he recorded two goals, one key pass and even helped defensively with two interceptions and one tackle.

Bailey, who has been clocked at a top speed of 21mph in the past could be the perfect replacement for Mane, should he decide to leave Anfield anytime soon.

This weekend, reports from the Mirror suggested that Real Madrid have made the Liverpool star aware of their interest ahead of a possible summer switch, and even though it remains to be seen whether the Senegal international would be tempted, it can be argued that a club of Real Madrid’s stature would entice anybody.

Call yourself a Liverpool expert? How much did each of these big-money January signings cost?

Which is why Klopp must consider alternatives immediately as the form of Mane (18 goals, 12 assists) is only going to continue to attract attention and he should look no further than Bailey, who has been likened to Arjen Robben in the past.

And in other news, Edwards could slash £27.24m from Liverpool’s wage bill…