Rumour Mongering: Liverpool Close to Signing Celtic Wunderkind Jikiemi

We could be in the middle of an extinction event, and Liverpool’s youth recruitment will still continue.

While most of the focus remains on players at the club and in particular the fallout of Mohamed Salah’s decision to go public about his upset over being benched, there’s always new transfer chatter. And today, according to the Daily Mail’s Lewis Steele, Liverpool FC are set to land Celtic’s 15-year-old defensive prospect Dara Jikiemi.

The player is playing three years ahead of his age group in Glasgow, and will continue his development by joining Simon Wiles’ U18s setup. Liverpool reportedly saw off a challenge from Nottingham Forest, and the transfer will proceed after the player turns 16 in January.

One of the brightest young defenders in Scotland, Jikiemi has already captained the nation’s Under-15s team and reportedly impressed Liverpool’s rerecruitment with his performances for Celtic’s Under-18 side and his combination of leadership, composure and strong defensive instincts.

The move will see him follow in the footsteps of Ben Gannon-Doak, who similarly swapped the green and white half of Glasgow for the red of Merseyside, and has developed into a Premier League-level footballer, with a £25 million transfer to Bournemouth earlier this summer.

Category: General Sports