Southampton reportedly interested in Liverpool's Mamadou Sakho in £20m deal

According to The Mirror, Southampton are preparing a £20million bid for Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho, who is presently on loan at Premier League strugglers Crystal Palace.

Sakho, who is out of favour at Liverpool after clashing with manager Jurgen Klopp, has impressed for Palace despite his team's league position—helping a previously leaky defence keep clean sheets in all three games he's played for the South London club.

Claude Puel's Saints are in desperate need in central defenders with Virgil van Dijk sidelined and heavily rumoured to be leaving the club just months after captain Jose Fonte defected to West Ham.

Stand-in centre halves Jack Stephens and Maya Yoshida have done a solid enough job in the absence of Fonte and van Dijk, but there isn't the same assured feel at the back that Saints fans will be used to.

Palace boss Sam Allardyce has already announced his desires to retain Sakho on a permanent basis. However, it's not thought the club had the foresight to include a clause which allowed them to exclusively make the signing permanent once the loan deal has finished.