Transfer news: Liverpool join the race to sign Arsenal target Alvaro Morata as forward looks for a 'relevant role'

Kop boss enters the January market with bid for Spanish youth star

Arsenal target Alvaro Morata

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is hoping to steal a march on Arsenal's approach for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata despite the La Liga side maintaining there is no deal to be done.

Gunners manager Arsene Wenger has been locked in negotiations with Madrid chiefs for a fortnight but is yet to make a breakthrough.

The nine-time European Cup winners are reluctant to sell the 21-year-old and are also rumoured to be against loaning him out to an English club.

Morata has found first-team opportunities limited this season under Carlo Ancelotti, starting just once all year in La Liga.

According to Spanish sports paper Marca, however, Liverpool are looking to trump their title rivals with Rodgers making a loan offer for the Spain Under-21 star.

Morata told Minuto 116: "Real Madrid have been my team since I was little and will be all my life, but I think the important thing is to have a relevant role in the team.

"If I ever feel that's not the case, I would look at other options. In football, it's very difficult to stay at the top and even more so in a team like Real.

"Moving up to the first team is tricky, not everyone deals with it well. If you learn how to handle it, you realise the value of every minute.

"Maybe in five or 10 minutes you have to go on and be decisive in a game. In football every minute is golden."