Premier League champions Liverpool have signed former Southport loanee Ben Davies.
The 25-year-old joins from Preston North End on a long term deal.
Liverpool have been forced to add defensive cover to their ranks after injuries to Virgil Van Dijk, Joel Matip, Fabinho and Joe Gomez.
Davies made 9 appearances for Southport in a two-month loan spell towards the end of Paul Carden’s tenure as Yellows boss in 2015.
Davies has been with Preston since the age of 11 but has now completed a move to Anfield for a figure believed to be around £2m.
Davies told Liverpoolfc.com: “I’m obviously delighted to be here.
“It’s a huge opportunity. It came as a bit of a surprise when it first came but once you start to get your head around it, the opportunity that is in front of me is incredible. I’d be silly to not make the most of it and learn off the players.”