Reports: Barcelona target astonishing January move for flop Premier League star

What's the rumour?

As we get closer to the January transfer window, it is only natural for a number of transfer rumours to surface, involving some of the top clubs from across the planet.

According to reports from Mundo Deportivo (via The Sun), Barcelona could be one of the teams that will be seen doing business in the winter transfer window, as they are reportedly eyeing a move for Liverpool's flop left-back, Alberto Moreno.

In case you didn't know...

Moreno moved from Sevilla to Liverpool in 2014 for a reported fee of £12 million. In his first two seasons at the Anfield-based club, Moreno became a prominent entity in the team, playing over 90 matches across all competitions in those two seasons alone.

However, since then, Moreno's Liverpool career has witnessed a steady spiral, as the Spaniard has struggled to find regular game time. Last season, manager Jurgen Klopp favoured James Milner to regularly play in the left-back position, forcing Moreno to become more of a cup player.

The heart of the matter

This season, Andrew Robertson's rise to prominence has further rendered Moreno irrelevant. So far, the Spaniard has made just 1 appearance this season and is expected to remain on the sidelines for a majority of the season.

Further, Moreno's contract expires next summer and Liverpool will be expected to offload him in January, rather than see him leave for free once his contract expires.

On the other hand, Barcelona are extremely keen on signing a left-back as an understudy to their first-choice left-back, Jordi Alba. The aforementioned report claims that Juan Bernat and Ferland Mendy were also on Barcelona's radar, but failure to facilitate deals for them has forced the Catalan giants to look towards Moreno.

Video: Alberto Moreno could become Barcelona's backup for Jordi Alba

Rumour Probability/Rating - 7/10

In all honesty, this deal would make sense for all parties involved. From Barcelona's perspective, they'd get a relatively young and affordable back-up for Jordi Alba. From Liverpool's perspective, Moreno is an almost forgotten player at Anfield, and profiting from his sale would be seen as the best step, rather than a free transfer away.

From Moreno's perspective, his playing time at Liverpool doesn't look like it can improve. If he's going to be a background player, he might as well be so at Barcelona than Liverpool.

What's next?

Barcelona will have to wait until January to actually formulate any move for the Spanish defender. Liverpool, too, will have to wait until then before they can hear any offers for Moreno. Until then, Moreno will invariably remain a Liverpool player.