Richard Hughes seems destined to leave Liverpool by the start of the 2026-27 season.

Talk of the Englishman looking for a way out of Anfield has been rife for a while now.

Most people thought that his main chunk of work was done last summer but, since the vast majority of his signings failed to make a difference, the former Bournemouth man is on the hunt for new talent once again.

However, the fact that this is likely to be Hughes’ last window in charge of Liverpool’s transfer business, he’ll probably want to go out with a bang.

And, it feels like the perfect parting gift from Hughes to Liverpool may have just emerged.

Richard Hughes needs to sign Illia Zabarnyi for Liverpool

One of the main problem areas among Liverpool’s ranks at the moment is their defence.

The Anfield outfit struggled to keep a clean sheet last term and, now that Ibrahima Konate has joined Real Madrid, there’s another void that needs to be filled.

Indeed, Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni are like two new signings but, since the Reds only have four senior centre-backs among their ranks with one of them being Joe Gomez, it still feels like an area of weakness.

So, even though hardly any links with new centre-backs have emerged over the last few weeks, it feels like the Anfield outfit need to revisit a deal for one of their former targets.

Illia Zabarnyi was one of Bournemouth’s best defenders before he chose to join Paris Saint-Germain.

He spent two and a half years with the Cherries and, although his best position is at centre-back, he has been used as a right-back on occasion.

The Ukraine international is also only 23 years old so, even though he’s already an exceptional player, there’s a strong chance that he could become even better.

Last term, he played in 37 games for PSG but, a lot of his appearances came from off the bench which is why he could end up wanting to seek pastures new.

And, since Liverpool have shown an interest in Zabarnyi in the past, they could try and make another move for him now.

Illia Zabarnyi would fit straight into Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool plans

Much like Jacquet and Leoni, Zabarnyi is still very young.

However, since the Ukranian has won two Champions League titles and has consistently featured in the Premier League and Ligue 1, it’s clear that, at the moment, he’s levels above them.

It’s unclear how much a deal for the 23-year-old would cost, but, with Jan Paul van Hecke and Luka Vuskovic both off the market, there aren’t really any more stand-out centre-back signings for Liverpool.

Indeed, they could’ve tried to sign Nico Schlotterbeck but, since he’s now injured and plays as the left-sided centre-back, a deal doesn’t make much sense for him at the moment.

Zabarnyi would probably cost a hefty chunk of change and would likely need convincing to come to Anfield but, if this is something that can be done, he’d easily fit into Iraola’s plans at Liverpool.

Having five senior centre-backs may seem a tad excessive but, with how long and gruelling seasons are these days, the more depth that teams have, the better.