One of the biggest stories in the footballing world over the past 24 hours comes from Liverpool. It seems that Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to leave the club upon the expiration of his contract in the summer.
The news has been broken by multiple sources, but perhaps the most reputable one is David Ornstein, who says that Real Madrid are ‘working to close’ the transfer for the England international.
He has made 349 appearances for the club so far, scoring 22 times, grabbing 87 assists and winning countless trophies. He is a modern-day legend at Anfield in every sense of the word.
Losing a talent like Alexander-Arnold would be a blow for Liverpool, but they are in the market for someone who is arguably an even bigger talent.
Liverpool chasing a bigger talent than Alexander-Arnold
Every now and then, a gem of a talent emerges in world football, and that player instantly becomes a target for Europe’s biggest clubs.
Alexander-Arnold certainly knows that feeling now, but how can FSG, the Reds’ owners soften the blow of losing such a highly-rated homegrown talent?
Well, by signing Jorrel Hato, of course, who seems set to leave Ajax this summer.
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The Dutchman isn’t a right-back but can fill in at centre-back or on the left. According to a report from TEAMtalk, the Reds have ‘shown interest’ in signing the Dutchman in recent weeks and have ‘long identified him as a top target for the summer of 2025’. That comes after the Reds looked at making a bid for the Dutchman back in January.
However, they will face stiff competition from Arsenal to sign the youngster. Fellow Premier League side Chelsea, Serie A giants AC Milan, and Los Blancos are also interested.
The 19-year-old could cost Liverpool upwards of £38m. That is an increase in their asking price from previous transfer windows when they are said to have wanted just £25m.
Why Hato would be a good signing
There are arguably few young players in world football as exciting as Hato. He has become a key player for Ajax in the past 12 months particularly and has already captained the Dutch giants, a testament to his leadership qualities at a young age.
Described by football talent scout Jacek Kulig as a “magnificent talent”, he has played a key role at left-back this season for the Dutch outfit, featuring 42 times for his boyhood club this term, scoring three goals and grabbing six assists from left-back.
His athleticism and reading of the game are second to none, and he has bags of technical ability, which helps him bring the ball out from the back. The video below showcases those things perfectly.
One interesting thing to look at is Alexander-Arnold’s stats at the age of 18, too. Now, it is worth pointing out that Hato has only just turned 19.
At the same age in 2017/18, the Liverpool number 66 played 34 games, scoring three goals, including one against Swansea City, and grabbed two assists.
The pair can also be compared statistically. Assessing the stats, via Sofascore, for Hato in the Dutch top flight so far this season, he completes 47.5 passes and attempts an average of 2.3 tackles per 90 minutes.
In comparison, the Liverpool defender back in 2017/18 was not quite as high with some of his key metrics, completing just 44.5 passes and attempting just 2.1 tackles per game.
|
Hato vs Alexander-Arnold at the age of 18 |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stat (per 90) |
Hato (24/25) |
Alexander-Arnold (17/18) |
|
Passes completed |
47.5 |
44.5 |
|
Pass accuracy |
90.6% |
77.3% |
|
Tackles |
2.3 |
2.1 |
|
Assists |
0.2 |
0.06 |
|
Aerial duels won |
1.8 |
0.3 |
|
Stats from Sofascore |
||
There is no doubt that Hato is an incredibly talented young player, shown in the fact that Liverpool and other top clubs want to sign him. In fact, he has even been described as “one of the most talented CBs of his generation in Europe” by Kulig in a separate post on social media.
As a result, there is certainly a strong case to be made that he is a more talented player than Alexander-Arnold was at the same age.
If the Reds are to bring him in this summer, it will be an excellent piece of business, and they would be signing an elite talent.
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