Liverpool could sign £13m Burnley forward after Nabil Fekir scouting missions

Liverpool are monitoring Jarrod Bowen and Raphinha but a low-budget alternative is also impressing in the Premier League

On the basis of their performance against Liverpool on Sunday, Burnley are good enough to remain a Premier League side next season.

They were the better team against the Reds for the majority at Turf Moor, only to find Alisson Becker in inspired form between the sticks.

Wasteful finishing and mistimed runs did not help their cause but, in difficult conditions and backed by a volatile crowd, they caused Jurgen Klopp’s side problems.

The fact they currently lie rock bottom of the table, seven points off safety, is due to the amount of games in hand they hold, having been stung by a Covid-19 outbreak earlier in the season, with them having played four games less than league-leaders Man City.

Sean Dyche’s side don’t concede many, as Liverpool found out, but they don’t score many either.

It’s why they’ve only won once this season yet have drawn 11 of their 21 matches.

RULE CHANGE: Champions League rule change gives Liverpool new challenge at Inter Milan

READ MORE: Rio Ferdinand has made his funniest comment yet about Liverpool

LIONEL MESSI TEAM-MATE: Liverpool signed 'complicated' £2m Argentine who was team-mates with Lionel Messi and sold him 12 months later

Fabinho’s winner was the 29th goal they have conceded in the Premier League this season. Such a total is comfortably the lowest in the bottom half of the table and stands as the seventh-best in the division with the likes of Manchester United conceding more.

Yet at the other end, only Norwich City have scored less than their 17 Premier League goals.

Even with games in hand, it is a big ask for them to make up the difference at the bottom. Yet Liverpool face a similar challenge at the other end of the table chasing down Man City.

Admittedly, it was only the form of Alisson that denied Burnley scoring at Turf Moor as they looked to exploit a shaky Reds defensive performance, with the Brazilian producing top saves against the likes of Josh Brownhill, Jay Rodriguez and Wout Weghorst.

But if Dyche’s side are to stay up, they need to start taking chances. It’s as simple as that.

And one former reported Reds target could be crucial to their survival hopes after giving Klopp a close-up view of his talents in a lively performance for the Clarets.

Burnley’s situation might look bleak now but you wonder where they might be without Maxwel Cornet.

The Ivorian has scored six goals from 12 Premier League appearances since joining the Clarets for £13m last summer, prior to facing Liverpool, with them losing just one of the matches he has scored in.

• Rate the Liverpool side during their win over Burnley

If he can keep up such a record, Burnley will have a chance of survival during the final months of the season.

And while he wasn’t able to add to that tally against the Reds, the 25-year-old was one of their most-threatening players despite not yet being fully sharp after injury.

Starting on the left, his pace was a problem throughout as he got in behind Trent Alexander-Arnold, while he would move central when looking to get in behind the Liverpool defence as a potential Burnley out-ball, and would sting Alisson’s gloves on one occasion.

The Reds were able to time their defensive line well to catch the winger offside on three occasions, but the threat was still there throughout as Dyche’s side continued to look to get him on the ball.

Catching the eye as a result, you wonder what sort of impact he would make alongside a higher calibre of team-mate as he continues to pass the test of his first season in the Premier League.

Should Burnley suffer relegation, his stay in the top-flight will be brief, but you wonder if Liverpool could be tempted to move if the possibility of a bargain transfer was on offer.

The Reds were regularly linked with Cornet a few seasons ago, at a time when they were regularly watching Lyon either side of their collapsed move for Nabil Fekir.

Cornet's time with Burnley has mainly been split between playing upfront, behind a front man or out on the left, but the left-footer is equally capable of playing on the right or even at left-back as he showcased in France.

Hypothetically you’d imagine seeing him utilised more on the right as an alternative to Mohamed Salah. And while the Egyptian’s role in the side is untouchable, such versatility would clearly appeal to Liverpool and make the winger a valuable squad option.

With Jarrod Bowen and Raphinha both known to be of interest, the Reds are looking at such a player for the summer, and Cornet would certainly be a cheaper alternative to the West Ham and Leeds United forwards.

Meanwhile, it wouldn’t be the first time Liverpool had looked to raid a relegated Premier League side with Danny Ings, Gini Wijnaldum, Andy Robertson, Xherdan Shaqiri and Harvey Elliott all making such a move in recent seasons.

Burnley’s Premier League fate is still to be decided and Cornet will ultimately a big say in what division they find themselves in next season.

But as a pacey, versatile winger with an eye for goal and delivering in the Premier League, while potentially available at a cut-price in the near future as he enters his peak years, he will surely have his suitors in the summer and beyond.

It would not be a surprise if his stay at Turf Moor did not prove to be a long one.

And as Liverpool links to Bowen and Raphinha persist, he could play his way back onto the Reds’ radar.