Liverpool are not in the hunt to sign Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos, according to Guillem Balague.
Sky Sports journalist Balague, who has established himself as a reliable source for exclusive information on Spanish football, has claimed on his personal Twitter account that the Premier League side are not interested in the 21-year-old.
It is also understood that Spanish giants Madrid are not willing to offload the central midfielder, who only arrived at the Bernabeu in the summer.
@GuillemBalague Any truth to the
Dani Ceballos reports?!?— LFC Keeks (@LFCKeeks) January 11, 2018
To Liverpool? Nothing at all. Real Madrid do not want him to go and Liverpool do not want him https://t.co/Z8fYWKV9QE
— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) January 11, 2018
Spanish news outlet Dario Gol has previously reported that Liverpool are keen on the Madrid ace in January as they look to find a replacement for Barcelona’s latest addition Philippe Coutinho.
However, Balague has dismissed any potential link for the Spain Under-21 international and insists he remains firmly in Zinedine Zidane’s plans.
Ceballos has made 15 appearances for Madrid so far this season and the technically gifted player has chipped in with two goals.
The rising youngster faces tough competition for a regular starting XI berth, but is viewed as a big star for the future.
OPINION
Ceballos is a highly-rated talent at Madrid and would certainly be a good signing for Liverpool, but any potential deal seems a million miles off. Reds manager Jurgen Klopp needs to focus on what he does still have at Anfield and he does have a squad strong enough to qualify for the top four in the Premier League. Coutinho’s sale has certainly left them lacking star quality in the middle of the park, but they are not a side that have struggled for goals this season and Mohamed Salah has arguably been their best player this season. Meanwhile, the addition of Virgil van Dijk in defence means that Liverpool are still in a very strong position.