Liverpool on alert as Atletico Madrid prepare for Forlan exit

Atletico Madrid are expecting that star striker Diego Forlan may leave the club and are interested in replacing him with Lyon's Argentine striker Lisandro Lopez, leaving the likes of Tottenham and Liverpool closely monitoring Forlan's situation.

31-year-old Forlan spent two years at Manchester United between 2002-4, but scored only 10 goals in 63 games at Old Trafford.

Forlan has since gone on to be a stunning success in Spain, scoring 54 goals in 106 games for Villarreal and now has an even better goals to games ratio in his three years at Atletico Madrid , where last season he won the Europa League.

As a result, a number of clubs have been linked with Forlan, including Premier League sides, in particular Liverpool and Tottenham. Forlan himself has admitted that he could move for the right offer.

Atletico Madrid appear to be preparing for such a scenario.  Spanish radio station Cadena Ser reports that the Spanish side are interested in signing Lisandro Lopez from Lyon.  The 27-year-old scored 22 goals for the French side during his debut season last year and looks likely to continue from where he left off, having netted four times so far this term.

Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson and his Tottenham counterpart Harry Redknapp will likely keep a close eye on how the situation progresses regarding Forlan.  Hodgson is keen to add firepower to Liverpool's attack and relieve Fernando Torres of some of the goalscoring burden at Anfield. Meanwhile Redknapp is also thought to be keen to add Forlan's experience, particularly in European competition, to the Spurs squad.

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.