Liverpool keeping tabs on Aster Vranckx

According to Mirror, Liverpool have recently been linked to K.V. Mechelen midfielder Aster Vranckx from the Belgian Pro League.

The Reds are aiming to secure the services of the young midfielder for a fee in the range of €1.5 million. Vranckx, just 17 years old, is not short of suitors, with some of Europe’s biggest clubs including Juventus, Bayern Munich, and Premier League rivals Manchester City and Manchester United also expressing interest.

Vranckx made his debut for club KV Mechelen in August 2019, when he was just 16. He has represented Belgium throughout the youth levels, most recently playing for the U-19 team.

For the most part, Vranckx has been utilized in the #6 role. At 6 feet tall, the midfielder of Congolese descent has a strong build allowing him to provide adequate cover to the back four.

The Belgian is agile enough to be used in more advanced roles in the midfield—a trait that Jurgen Klopp deeply values.

If signed, Vranckx would be another indication of the shift in the transfer strategy that Liverpool has undertaken under Jurgen Klopp.

Despite boasting many of the world’s best players such as Van Dijk, Salah, Firmino, and Mane in the prime years of their career, the club have placed an emphasis on lining up talent for the future, with the signings of teenagers Harvey Elliot, Sepp van den Berg, and Ki-Jana Hoever in recent transfer windows.

Furthermore, Vranckx fits the mould of player that Jurgen Klopp has targeted throughout his time on Merseyside.

The manager has always sought versatile midfielders who aren’t entrenched in specific roles, frequently shuffling Georginio Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson, James Milner, and Adam Lallana across the midfield three.

Vranckx is nimble enough to play further up the pitch, perhaps suggesting that Klopp sees the potential to utilize the young Belgian’s versatility.

With the financial strain that the coronavirus situation has put teams under, Vranckx could prove to be quite a clever signing for the Reds.

The team is well-equipped currently, but of the 15 players currently leading the club in minutes this season, 10 of them lie between the ages of 26-29.

To avoid the rebuilding downfall that clubs such as Real Madrid recently faced following the ageing of their core, Liverpool would be smart to begin assembling players who can contribute in years to come.

The midfielder would surely start out in the youth set-up, but his future first-team fate is much more unclear. The Belgian should strive to follow in the footsteps of Curtis Jones, who rose up the ranks of the academy to gain the trust of Klopp and is set to be granted more first-team opportunities in the near future.

Maybe, however, he ends up struggling to adjust to the demands of English football. Maybe he falls somewhere in between, a la Marko Grujic or Harry Wilson, who have featured sparingly for the Reds but have performed well on loan to other clubs, giving the club the opportunity to sell them for a major profit.

Regardless, Vranckx’s potential makes for a low-risk investment that could pay major dividends in some form in the future.