OPINION
Few will remember that the first signing Jurgen Klopp made at Liverpool was young Serbian sensation Marko Grujic, who arrived for £6million from Red Star Belgrade.
Despite some early promise and the considerable hype which followed Grujic from Serbia, the combative midfielder has not really managed to make much of an impact at Anfield.
It is known that Grujic is still extremely highly-rated by Klopp and club bosses, but his prospects of getting into the first-team haven’t seemed to improve at all in recent years.
A successful loan spell at Cardiff City last season did not help, with Grujic currently on loan once again, this time in the Bundesliga with Hertha Berlin.
Despite a setback relating to an ankle injury, Grujic has now begun to reassert himself well at Hertha, and has now given an indication on where he sees himself in the 2019/20 season.
Speaking to BZ Berlin, Grujic said: “If Liverpool want another loan for me next season, Hertha would be the club I would most like to play for. It’s my big goal to play at Liverpool. But I have time. Another year with Hertha would do me good. But I will not decide that alone.”
It is reassuring for the Reds that the 6ft 3in midfielder [Transfermarkt] is obviously still keen to make his mark at Anfield despite two underwhelming years so far.
However, Klopp is now set for a big decision in the coming months which will help determine Grujic’s future at the club.
Does he bring him back next season to compete with the likes of Fabinho, Naby Keita, Gini Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson and James Milner in midfield?
Or does he let him join Hertha for another year to continue his development in a move which would likely bring into question his long-term future at Anfield?
Both decisions will have knock-on effects for the club and the player, and Klopp must choose wisely if he is to finally get the best out of the talented midfielder.
