5 facts about US starlet Junior Flores, targeted by Brendan Rodgers at Celtic

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The 18-year-old hasn’t made a first team appearance at Dortmund but it’s never easy competing with Marco Reus, Christian Pulisic and Andre Schurrle.

The prospect of guiding Celtic back to the top table of European football obviously got Brendan Rodgers’ neckhairs tingling when he dotted the I’s on his contract at the Glasgow giants in the summer.

After missing out on Liverpool’s first Premier League title by inches and a Dwight Gayle hat-trick, the Northern Irishman has made no secret of his desire to build a legacy at Celtic Park.

So it would make sense that he is planning for the long-term. According to the Scottish Sun, Rodgers has his eyes on Borussia Dortmund’s next teen sensation.

But who is Junior Flores and why is Celtic’s forward-thinking manager desperately trying to sign him – again?

1) The 18-year-old attacking midfielder earned admiration from all across the MLS and Europe after starring in the AGS Cup in Spain, with PSG eventually beaten to his signature after Dortmund laid their cards firmly on the table with a mammoth financial offer.

2) Rodgers has unfinished business. According to the Scottish Sun, the 43-year-old was desperate to make signing Flores one of his first official acts as Liverpool manager after taking over in 2012.

3) The USA under-20 international has failed to follow in the footsteps of American sensation Christian Pulisic (below) at the Westfalenstadion, however, with an ankle injury curtailing his progress in the reserve team this season. Reports suggest Dortmund are ready to cut their losses with his contract expiring in six months.

4) Flores could also decide to represent El Salvador at international level despite a number of fleeting appearances for the USA’s youth sides. ‘Soccer’ across the Atlantic has grown rapidly in popularity in recent years, with the likes of Pulisic, Jordan Morris and Bobby Wood earning longing glances from a number of European clubs. Flores could yet be the latest young US talent to make his name.

5) “He’s a funny guy, he loves messing around. He’s always just kidding around. What I like about him is he always gives young players a chance.” Not surprisingly, the presence of a yellow-clad Jurgen Klopp on the Dortmund touchline proved enough to convince Flores to up sticks and take the plunge abroad, the Twelfth Yank reports.

Yet, Rodgers hardly has a bad record at providing the pathway for the next generation, with Raheem Sterling, Joe Allen and current AC Milan talisman Suso owing their rising trajectory to their former coach.