£16m 'tank' who wants Liverpool move 'can be as good as Virgil one day'

Liverpool are currently very well stocked in central defence.

The Reds have Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Joe Gomez and Ibrahima Konate in their ranks.

Liverpool also have Rhys Williams in their ranks, while Nathaniel Phillips has gone out on loan.

However, it’s worth taking note when a player tipped to become the next Van Dijk says Liverpool are his dream club.

That player is Josko Gvardiol, one of the best young defenders in Europe.

The 20-year-old joined RB Leipzig in 2020 from Dinamo Zagreb for a reported £16million.

He stayed with Dinamo in 2020-21 before moving the following summer, where he has done incredibly well.

Though Gvardiol replaced Konate at Leipzig, he made it clear he dreams of following in the Reds man’s footsteps.

24 Sata – via The Mirror – asked Gvardiol for his favourite foreign club and he replied: “Liverpool.”

He went on to say: “Since I was a little boy, my dad and I watched Liverpool matches, and I grew up with only them.

“When I took football more seriously, I started following them, and I definitely want the Premier League and Liverpool.”

BBC Sport has now published a feature article on Gvardiol, based on the BBC Sounds podcast Wunderkids.

‘He’s going to succeed’

Izak Ante Sucic, the assistant editor of Germania Sport, gave an insight on the youngster.

“Since he was a child, he’s been built like a tank,” said Sucic.

“He can go forward, he can jump, he can tackle, he can do everything you want.

“He can play with the ball at his feet, he can play against those big attackers, he can play against the guys with pace and technical abilities.

In Croatia we like to compare him to Virgil van Dijk, because he’s built that way (6ft 1in).

“He’s one of his role models in football and he’s also mentioned Thiago Silva and Sergio Ramos.

“In my opinion, I think he can be as good as Virgil one day.

“When you see how he behaves on the field and off the field, he’s one of those guys where you’d say ‘he’s going to succeed’.”