Rio Ngumoha is the talk of the town after scoring a last-gasp winner for Liverpool at St. James' Park on Monday night, thus preserving Arne Slot's flawless start to the Premier League campaign.
'Flawless' perhaps conveys the wrong mood. Liverpool have been pressed against the ropes in each of their opening league fixtures this season, yet they have snatched victory against Bournemouth at Anfield and Newcastle United on Tyneside.
It wouldn't be unfair to suggest that Slot's side are tactically imbalanced at the moment, with the thrilling addition of British-record playmaker Florian Wirtz seeming to distort the team's balance, and the defensive fragility of Ibrahima Konate and much change further providing Slot with food for thought.
And so talks are ongoing for Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi, with hope that he will sign before deadline day. Perhaps the 25-year-old's arrival would add depth and another dimension at the rear to launch Liverpool back into a smoother rhythm.
However, there's another top target who could. Indeed, Alexander Isak's potential move to Merseyside remains one of the biggest stories as the market winds down.
The latest on Isak to Liverpool
Liverpool's bid for Newcastle United striker Isak is going down to the wire, with the Magpies still yet to sign one centre-forward this summer - let alone two.
The Sweden international has made it perfectly clear he has no intention of staying at St. James' Park beyond the transfer window (though how much power he has over that is another matter), but Liverpool will not follow up their rejected £110m offer from the start of August without encouragement from the Toon.
A PIF delegation extended an olive branch to the 25-year-old after Liverpool's dramatic victory on Monday, but Isak has doubled down on his stance.
The ball, frustratingly, is in Newcastle's court, for they cannot reasonably cash in on their talisman if they do not find and sign a replacement (or two).
With that in mind, FSG have identified the perfect alternative, and he might even prove to be a better signing for Slot's side.
Liverpool ready D-day bid for Isak alternative
If Liverpool do fail in their protracted bid to sign Isak, sporting director Richard Hughes won't turn to an alternative centre-forward.
That's according to GIVEMESPORT. The publication have revealed that Liverpool are ready to make a deadline-day swoop for Real Madrid winger Rodrygo in the event that they miss out on Isak.
Rodrygo has been anticipated to leave Real this summer after struggles last season and signs of a diminished role under Xabi Alonso's wing. Even with the La Liga giants open to the Brazilian's departure, he has been priced at £76m.
Arsenal and Manchester City have shown interest of their own this summer, but the Gunners have signed Eberechi Eze this week and Pep Guardiola's outfit look set to bar Savinho's move to Tottenham Hotspur, thus jeopardising their move for Rodrygo.
What Rodrygo would bring to Liverpool
Liverpool sold Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich this summer, but Cody Gakpo has started the season strongly, scoring against Bournemouth and notching two assists at Newcastle. Ngumoha's incredible emergence eases the need for a wide forward further.
But Rodrygo is a special player, and there's no doubt that Liverpool could do with a little bit more to complete their frontline.
Given that the 24-year-old, who can play on both wings and as a frontman, managed to score 14 goals and provide 11 assists across all competitions last year, even though in a rut, Liverpool could strike gold in bringing him over.
And considering that he would cost less than Isak, maybe Rodrygo would even prove the better signing to make.
Isak is one of the best strikers in the world, and last year he scored 27 goals across all competitions as Newcastle qualified for the Champions League and won the Carabao Cup, with Isak scoring as Newcastle beat Liverpool at Wembley.
But Madrid's tenacious wide forward has been remarked to be a "world-class superstar" by his former teammate Luka Modric, and boasts a wide-ranging skill set that appears custom-built for a top role in the Premier League.
Rodrygo's clinical output over the past year has left plenty to be desired, no doubt about it, but there would be confidence that Slot could give rise to the £207k-per-week talent's prolific side, while harnessing that ever-present underlying energy and application.
Isak and Rodrygo, two forwards of varying position and role, aren't comparable in the strictest sense, but looking at their data when lined against one another underscores the reasoning behind a Liverpool bid for the latter.
To put it simply, Liverpool have hit the jackpot on Hugo Ekitike, whose £79m journey from Eintracht Frankfurt to Anfield has already yielded three goals and an assist from three matches. Sky Sports' Jamie Carragher has hailed the Frenchman's "brilliant start", and there are those who question the need for a record-breaking move for Isak after such an exciting addition.
Ekitike, 23, looks a real sensation in the making, and though it would be unfair to expect him to maintain his present output across the long and circuitous campaign, who can deny him his potential?
Might Isak inhibit that growth? Might the addition of the Scandinavian superstar threaten to disrupt the progress of a rising talent who has already found a degree of fluency in England that avoids so many foreign hopefuls as they wade in and look to make their name.
Rodrygo, however, could play across the frontline and thus add depth without disrupting the progress being forged at Anfield right now.
Make no mistake, Isak would be an incredible signing for Liverpool, but Rodrygo, cheaper and more positionally dynamic, is a world-class player himself, and he knows how to shape a team aiming for the top.