David Hancko has signed a new contract with Eredivisie champions Feyenoord just weeks after the defender’s agent confirmed interest from Premier League giants Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp’s title-challengers may have cooled their interest in a number of left-sided centre-back targets last summer – Micky van de Ven and Piero Hincapie on the radar at the time – but that increasingly feels like a classic case of kicking the can down the road.
As Hincapie’s agent explained a few months back, Liverpool opted against bringing in a new defender because they felt midfield reinforcements were a more pressing concern. Now, with Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai getting their feet under the Anfield table, you can expect the Premier League leaders to pick up in 2024 where they left off in 2023, HITC Football understanding that David Hancko is one of a number of defensive southpaws under consideration ahead of the off-season.
Luring the Slovakia international away from Feyenoord, however, may have just got that bit harder.
Liverpool are keen on Feyenoord’s David Hancko
Hancko, who joined the reigning champions for around £6 million from Slavia Prague, has extended his contract at De Kuip until the summer of 2028.
This does not mean, of course, that Hancko is off the market, as far as Liverpool are concerned. Feyenoord handing the 26-year-old a new deal may be a decision motivated by their desire to raise Hancko’s price-tag, ensuring that they can extract maximum value from a player who – at the age of 26 – may be tempted by a move to one of Europe’s major leagues as he approaches his prime.
Anfield giants face PSG battle
Branislav Jasurek, Hancko’s agent, admits that Paris Saint-Germain have shown an interest, as well as Liverpool.
“As an agency, we are in contact not only with these two clubs (Liverpool and PSG), but also with others who are looking into David’s situation,” Jasurek tells TN.
“The people at Feyenoord know that David Hancko will be sold even in the summer. It would have to be one of the big clubs. He will certainly not go from Feyenoord, which is going to play in the Champions League, to a club that will play in the bottom half of the Premier League.”
Interestingly, Hancko admits to being a big fan of the man he could eventually replace on Merseyside, Virgil van Dijk six years his senior. The one-time Fiorentina stopper, who is renowned for his piercing passes into midfield, is also an admirer of Liverpool as a whole, though he will be denied the chance to play under Jurgen Klopp should that potential summer move become a reality.
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