Brighton & Hove Albion failed with an 11th hour move for Liverpool midfielder Marko Grujic, according to journalist Paul Joyce.
The Times reporter revealed the news on his personal Twitter account on Monday, with the Reds confirming on their official website that the Serbian international has rejoined German side Hertha Berlin on loan for next season.
The 23-year-old, Jurgen Klopp’s first signing as Liverpool manager, spent the last campaign with the Bundesliga outfit, and will now return to the capital.
However, Joyce noted that Klopp has big plans for the youngster and is counting on him for the 2020-21 season.
Brighton were among a number of clubs interested in Marko Grujic, but acted too late. He will rejoin Hertha Berlin on loan with Liverpool to receive £2m loan fee. Jurgen Klopp counting on the player for 2020-21.
— paul joyce (@_pauljoyce) July 1, 2019
OPINION
This is an interesting one, and it seems like Brighton just acted too late on their interest. Obviously the Seagulls like Grujic and wanted to take him to the AMEX Stadium on loan, but in that case they should have got in there earlier. Hertha were always the frontrunners to get the Serbian in again, given how well he performed in the Bundesliga last season. £2million isn’t a bad loan fee for a 23-year-old who doesn’t figure in Liverpool’s immediate plans, so that’s encouraging as well from a Reds perspective. However, the biggest takeaway from all this is that Klopp is counting on Grujic for the 2020-21 season. Not only does that indicate that the German himself is staying long-term, but it tells us that he sees something special in Grujic. Clearly he rates him extremely highly and is very excited about his potential. Hopefully, now, the player can go on and continue his excellent progress in Germany, before returning to a first team role at Anfield.
