It's amazing what a successful transfer window can do. One year ago, the 2022 World Cup captivated the footballing world's attention, with players battling under the scorching Qatar sun for glory. For Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, it was a welcome break, a chance to recalibrate and steer his side back on track after a rather abject start to the 2022/23 Premier League campaign.

But fortune did not favour the spluttering Reds and cohesion went out the window, with a malfunctioning engine room spreading instability across the park for the Anfield outfit.

Liverpool finished fifth, which closed a seven-year window within the Champions League, but Klopp got to work and cleared out the deadwood, bringing in the likes of Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch to restore the midfield.

Klopp has a plan and while the aforementioned stars are dynamic and multi-functional, there is space in the squad for a tough-tackling titan such as Fulham's Joao Palhinha.

Liverpool transfer news – Joao Palhinha

According to Spanish reports, Liverpool have joined Manchester United in the pursuit of Portugual international Palhinha, who has been immense for Fulham since joining from Sporting Lisbon for £20m in 2022.

Bayern Munich are also expected to return after failing to secure Palhinha's signature on transfer deadline day in August, despite having already wrapped up a medical and agreed a £60m fee.

Now resigned to cashing in on their star man, the Cottagers are understood to be lining up a bid for Fluminense midfielder Andre – also a recent target for Klopp's side – to facilitate Palhinha's departure.

While Andre is a talented prospect, Palhinha, aged 28, would bring the experience and mettle to complete Liverpool's midfield.

Joao Palhinha's Fulham career in numbers

Since arriving on the Premier League scene, Palhinha has established himself as one of the finest holding midfielders in the business, instrumental as Marco Silva's side finished in tenth place last term after promotion from the Championship.

Dubbed a "tackling machine" by teammate Harrison Reed, no player completed more tackles than Palhinha last term; in fact, he topped the charts by a landslide.

Joao Palhinha

147

Moises Caicedo

100

Idrissa Gueye

97

Casemiro

89

Tyler Adams

89

In a similarly resounding vein of form this term, the 23-cap international has made 72 tackles thus far in 2023/24, with Tottenham Hotspur's Yves Bissouma in second with 47.

Fulham raised several question marks after a slow start to the campaign – perhaps understandable after ferocious talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic completed a £50m transfer to Al-Hilal in the summer, having posted 14 goals from just 23 Premier League starts last year.

But recently the side has clicked into gear, winning successive fixtures 5-0 after an enthralling 4-3 defeat against table-toppers Liverpool at Anfield.

Palhinha has been vital, holding the engine room together and making a staggering 15 tackles across the past two games, with reporter Dan Evans hailing the player's "brilliant" level of performance.

Across the current campaign, he is averaging 5.5 tackles, 6.9 ball recoveries, 1.7 interceptions and 1.6 clearances per game, also completing 84% of his passes and winning 58% of his ground duels.

While his distribution could be crisper, there is little doubt that he is one of the most formidable forces in European football, and would offer a skill set unlike anything Klopp's side have to offer right now.

Joao Palhinha's style of play

Palhinha hungers for tackles the way a lion hungers for its prey – it's intrinsic, simply woven into the core of his game, braided into his style and make-up.

Just as Manchester City's world-class striker Erling Haaland feasts upon opposition through his free-scoring brilliance, Palhinha dislodges surging attackers and stamps out transitions with the same air of inevitability.

As per FBref, he ranks among the top 1% of midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for tackles, the top 9% for interceptions, the top 16% for blocks, the top 13% for clearances and the top 15% for aerial wins per 90, presenting an evenly spread understanding of the defensive craft.

The £80k-per-week ace's transition-breaking efficiency is just what Liverpool to take the edge in the tense Premier League title race, which is starting to take shape.

Mac Allister, signed from Brighton & Hove Albion for £35m in the summer, has filled in as the No. 6 on Merseyside in the absence of stalwart Fabinho, who departed England for Saudi Arabia in the summer after a stark decline.

But the Argentinian star is naturally fielded in a more creative role, where he excelled for the Seagulls last term and plundered 12 goals and three assists as his erstwhile club qualified for European competition for the first time in its history.

Imagine Joao Palhinha & Alexis Mac Allister

Mac Allister has played 14 of his 18 matches in a Liverpool shirt in the deep-lying midfield role, and while he may favour a more offensive placement, and the Reds support may yearn for a specialist defensive midfielder, it's hard to argue against his effectiveness so far.

Liverpool are in pole position in the English top-flight. With Manchester City not quite looking the same animal at this stage after winning the treble last season, there is a growing and tangible sense that Klopp's second Premier League title could be within reach.

For his part, Mac Allister has completed 88% of his passes across 14 league appearances, as per Sofascore, averaging 2.2 tackles, 6.1 recoveries and 1.2 interceptions per game, though he is emerging on top in just 47% of his contested duels and this is a concern.

Palhinha could unlock the 24-year-old, with the pairing perhaps even capable of forming a double-pivot of sorts, such is the counterbalance of their contrasting skill sets.

The £150k-per-week Liverpool phenom ranks among the top 5% of midfielders for shots taken, the top 18% for shot-creating actions, the top 20% for progressive passes, the top 19% for progressive carries and the top 16% for successful take-ons per 90.

Such metrics underpin his instinct to carry the ball up the pitch, he is a vehicle, and an effective one at that: breezy gait, technical prowess, and thunderous striking power, Mac Allister is both creative and clinical, supplying his peers with selfless passes or intelligently choosing to fire the ball into the net himself, just so.

The stability that could be fortified in Liverpool's centre with Palhinha's acquisition is a scary thought for the rest of the Premier League, with Klopp's side yet to reach their peak – currently leading the race for the crown nonetheless.