Thiago Alcantara would not be a guaranteed starter at Liverpool should he complete a transfer from Bayern Munich this summer, according to John Barnes.

The Spain international, who joined the Bundesliga champions back in 2013 from Barcelona, has informed the club he will not sign a new contract and Liverpool are reportedly keen.

But Barnes thinks that while the 29-year-old would bring a different dynamic to the Reds, he may not be able to play on regular basis due to stiff competition for places in midfield.

“I don’t think he will come and be a first-team regular,” he told BonusCodeBets.

“I think Liverpool know what their best [starting] 11 is and they were 20 points ahead of everybody else, so they won’t need to change that.

“But in certain games, when teams play differently, Klopp may feel that a player like him might make a difference in certain games instead of changing the way Liverpool will play and put him ahead of one of the players, who are all very similar.

“Fabinho is the real holding midfield player that will be the first name of the midfield three, Thiago may come and add to the other two positions.”