Liverpool could strike a Premier League bombshell by signing Luka Vuskovic. The Reds' interest is said to be serious.
Liverpool are on the hunt for a new centre-back and Luka Vuskovic is understandably a name that keeps popping up. The Croatian took the Bundesliga by storm last season, performing as one of the very best in the league at only 18.
That earned him a move to Brighton from Tottenham Hotspur. That doesn’t admittedly sound like a jump up but the Seagulls were willing to give Vuskovic a starting role immediately - exactly what he needed at this stage.
His efforts with Hamburg shouldn’t have led to a season on the sidelines. Vuskovic needed to carry on that momentum and he absolutely has, playing a big role in Brighton’s superb start to the campaign.
That naturally has bigger clubs looking. Vuskovic wasn’t necessarily going to get regular first-team football if he’d moved to Liverpool or Real Madrid last summer. But after a full Premier League season? Very possibly.
It means the likes of Teamtalk say that Liverpool, Real Madrid and Barcelona have serious interest. And we think it’s got the potential to be a true bombshell signing for the Reds.
Value Adder: Luka Vuskovic
Vuskovic was one of the stories of last season as he took to an elite-level league in the Bundesliga like it was nothing. Our Value Adder data model ranked him as the 8th most valuable teenage player across the top five leagues.
But it's worth noting that he's the only defensive player in the top 8. In fact, the only defensive players in the top 10 are Vuskovic and Barcelona's Pau Cubarsi.
For purely defensive value, Vuskovic was in the top 10 for players under 24. Note that that's 'players': we're not just looking at centre-backs here.
Get rid of the age bracket and Vuskovic is 18th among all centre-backs. It's an outrageous position for a teenager - there are only two other players under 24 in the top 20, let alone 18.
Attacking value? Vuskovic is 6th across all centre-backs in the top five leagues and this is where we think the real bombshell is. There are very, very few centre-backs who can deliver at both ends.
Liverpool have had arguably the best at both for a long time now in Virgil van Dijk. The Dutchman sits just one place ahead of Vuskovic last season, finishing 5th for attacking value in centre-backs across the top five leagues.
The Reds' defence has been anchored by Van Dijk since 2018 and we do expect that time to come to an end next year. How incredible, then, that Liverpool may find his successor in Vuskovic.
How many other centre-backs can claim to be above the 95th percentile in their top 5 league for shots per 90, share of the defensive output, aerials won, defensive actions, and attacking actions? Now how many are doing that before turning 20?
Vuskovic is an outrageous talent and perhaps Liverpool's best chance of finding a genuine Van Dijk successor. Not just a good centre-back to replace him but the next generation's equivalent. A player so unique and so well-rounded that he's a thorn in the side of every other Premier League club.
Because that's the bombshell here. While every club has been waiting for Liverpool to finally be rid of Van Dijk, they may just go and get another one.