Mark Lawrenson tells Liverpool to move for Chelsea defender

Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson has urged the Reds to make a summer move for Chelsea teenager Reece James, who spent the 2018-19 campaign on loan at Wigan Athletic.

James, who is yet to make a first-team appearance for Chelsea, appeared in 45 of Wigan's 46 Championship fixtures during a successful spell at the DW Stadium.

The 19-year-old has been linked with both Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester United in recent weeks, but Lawrenson has claimed that his former club should attempt to sign the full-back this summer.

"Recruitment is the biggest thing for any club now and I don't think [Jurgen] Klopp will go mad in the transfer market this summer," Lawrenson told the Daily Star.

"But I tell you who I've seen - and I don't think they could easily get him - the right-back at Wigan, on loan from Chelsea, Reece James. In that league he makes it look so ridiculously easy. I think he could make the step up. But of course he belongs to Chelsea at the moment."

James - named in the Championship Team of the Year - penned a new four-year deal with Chelsea last summer before heading out on loan.