Report: Liverpool set their sights on signing ‘Cafu-like’ Celtic player

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Liverpool are seemingly interested in Celtic defender Kristoffer Ajer, according to a report.

The Daily Star has claimed that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has set his sights on the Celtic player as the Reds look to add two more new signings to their squad this summer.

The Premier League champions are in need of another centre-back after Dejan Lovren departed the club this summer.

Virgil van Dijk is Liverpool’s main man at the back, with Joe Gomez and Joel Matip the guys who partner him on a regular basis.

If the Merseyside club could secure Ajer’s signature then they would have a seriously talented player on their hands.

Van Dijk himself graced the Parkhead pitch once, and look at what he has achieved since then, so there’s no reason why Ajer cannot do the same.

The 22-year-old is a tall and powerful centre-back, who likes to bring the ball out from the back and drive forward if possible.

Added with that, Ajer is versatile and he has been used in various positions before by his club, including playing at right-back and in a holding role – on one occasion last season, former Scotland winger, Neil McCann was so impressed by his performance at full-back that he compared to him to Brazil legend, Cafu.

He told BBC Sport in August 2019: ‘Kristoffer Ajer is looking like Cafu here. He is bombing up and down the right flank and has the freedom of Celtic Park’.

A player of Ajer’s quality would be very useful to Klopp, but Neil Lennon simply cannot lose the player, especially given their problems at the back this season and the fact that they are chasing ten Premiership titles in a row.

If Liverpool were to snap him up then it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Bhoys demanded a seriously inflated fee for his services. And then, it has to be questioned whether Liverpool would want to pay big money for a player who would start off on the bench?