Red Bull Salzburg coach Matthias Jaissle believes Karim Adeyemi should stay at the club despite interest from Premier League giants Liverpool, speaking to Kicker.
Three months out from his 20th birthday, the youngest player to score for the German national team since 2011 has plenty of time on his side.
If reports are to be believed, Barcelona, Liverpool and former employers Bayern Munich are already chasing Adeyemi’s signature.
But with just one full season of regular top-flight football under his belt, it’s hard to justify Adeyemi giving up his role as Salzburg’s talismanic centre-forward just to sit on the bench at Anfield or the Allianz Arena, relegated to the sidelines as Mo Salah or Robert Lewandowski weave their magic.
Adeyemi has scored 11 goals in 16 games for Salzburg this season, including one in the 2-1 Champions League group-stage victory over Lille this month.
According to 33-year-old Jaissle, who succeeded Jesse Marsch in the Red Bull hot seat, Adeyemi still has a lot to learn. And where better to learn than at the club that catapulted Erling Haaland into the big time.
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“I think our shirt suits him very well,” Jaissle says of a player who has been on Liverpool’s radar for a number of years.
“He still has so much potential and I hope he will continue to develop that with us for a while.”
The struggles of Takumi Minamino on Merseyside are also something for Adeyemi to ponder.
Interestingly, the jet-heeled youngster isn’t the only Red Bull wonder kid on the radar of a Premier League club.
Liverpool have also been linked with his Salzburg teammate Benjamin Sesko, a physical yet explosive forward in the Haaland mould, while Croatia U21 international Roko Simic has been tipped to sign for West Ham or Tottenham Hotspur.
If Adeyemi does go, Jaissle won’t be short of ready-made replacements.
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