Stefan Bajcetic is set to become a ‘top, top player’ under Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool with former Premier League midfielder Jamie O’Hara telling talkSPORT (1 March, 11.40pm) that the Spaniard is something of a ‘young Xavi’.
You’ve probably seen the clip by now. The one doing the rounds on social media, collecting likes and retweets like Crash Bandicoot collects wumpa fruit.
Stefan Bajcetic controls a Virgil van Dijk pass, takes a Newcastle United midfielder out of the game and springs an attack all with one swivel of his hips. It was a move reminiscent of legendary compatriot Xavi in his Barcelona pomp.
“I grew up watching Xavi and Paul Scholes. I used to watch videos of them all the time, constantly. The way they would receive the ball…” says O’Hara, formerly of Tottenham Hotspur, Wolves and Portsmouth.
“If you’re a young midfielder, watch that Liverpool midfielder. If you watch him play on the half turn, he is like a little young Xavi in there. Those little intricate passes and the way he gets it. Honestly, he is a joy to watch. He really is.
“He’s going to grow into a top, top player for Liverpool.”
Can Stefan Bajcetic become Liverpool’s own Xavi?
It’s easy to forget, given the way Bajcetic has slotted effortlessly into the heart of Klopp’s engine room, that the former Celta Vigo whizzkid spent much of last term playing at centre-half with the reserves; displaying a tactical flexibility made famous by Xavi’s one-time Camp Nou team-mate Javier Mascherano.
Bajcetic only turned 18 in October. He also started five of Liverpool’s last six Premier League games. That includes the 2-0 midweek triumph over Wolves which raised further hopes of a late top-four charge.
“Top talent, super player,” Klopp says of the teenager, who is spending much of his time on the training field honing his talents under the watchful eye of Thiago Alcantara.
“(He has) played really, really, really good for us so far. It’s a pure joy to work with him. He’s a top, intelligent boy.”
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