Leeds shouldn’t pass up chance to sign 20-year-old who shone against Jadon Sancho, for free – TBR View

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Leeds United were linked with Liverpool academy gem Yasser Larouci last year.

With his Anfield contract coming to an end, Marcelo Bielsa is reportedly keeping tabs on the 20-year-old once again.

Larouci made his Liverpool debut in January 2020, and was part of Jurgen Klopp’s senior training group at Melwood.

However, the left-back has dropped out of senior contention this season and has even struggled for game time in the Under-23s.

The arrival of Kostas Tsimikas, Andy Robertson’s class and reliability, and James Milner’s versatility meant Larouci was low in the pecking order.

As reported in The Athletic, Larouci was unwilling to sign a new deal last year and so the club were open to offers for him.

He has featured just twice for Liverpool’s Under-23s this season, his last involvement coming last October.

The Athletic claims that Leeds looked at him a few windows ago but felt he was too expensive, while their search has now switched to recruiting a more experienced option at left-back.

However, when a player of Larouci’s calibre becomes available, and for nothing, that’s an opportunity that can’t be passed up.

Larouci was previously tipped to become Robertson’s understudy, and in a pre-season clash with Borussia Dortmund in 2019, he shone against Jadon Sancho.

“Yasser, our (then) 18-year-old left-back played against one of the biggest talents in world football and did really well,” Klopp said at the time.

And when it comes to the versatility needed to shine in a Marcelo Bielsa team, Larouci – a converted left-back – has plenty of it.

“It was a bit hard when I started to play at full-back, because I had to learn how to defend,” Larouci is quoted by talkSPORT as saying.

“Normally I don’t like to defend, I prefer just to attack, but I think it’s good. He thinks I’ve got the quality to play full-back because I can just run and run, to attack and defend.

“I think I can get my chance to play in the first team at left-back, and if it’s not left-back I can still play as a winger. I think it’s good if you can play two positions.

“If I’m with the first team, left-back, right wing, left wing… it’s the same.”