Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and his assistant Pepijn Lijnders are hugely impressed by a summer transfer target.

The Reds are being linked to a move for Inter Milan's star midfielder Nicolo Barella.

As Klopp continues his refresh of his midfield, fans were reminded of quotes the two made about Barella last season.

In his book, 'Intensity: Inside Liverpool FC', Lijnders stated: "On the Friday night we watched Inter against Salernitana in the hotel, and [Nicolo] Barella was superb.

"Jurgen asked me why I was laughing; we were in the middle of a discussion, but I was watching the game with one eye and saw him play another incredible pass. 'I'm just so happy that he doesn't feature against us,' I said. 'Every attack starts with him, it's scary.'"

Klopp had said of Barella previously: "That Barella is not able to play is not bad for us! He is a really good player, a really good player. I like him a lot.

"He has all the things you want from a midfield player. He's aggressive, he's technically [good], he can run for ages and all these kinds of things. So he's a top-class player. But – I'm not 100 percent sure – probably the replacement will be Arturo Vidal.

"So that's experience at its best. He's played everywhere at the top level and I think, in these games, Arturo is especially motivated, so I'm not so sure it's such an advantage for us that he will play instead of Barella."