Liverpool are “in the mix” to sign highly-rated Bournemouth centre-back Dean Huijsen this summer, according to journalist David Ornstein.
A new central defender is a must for the Reds when this season reaches its conclusion, in order to plan for eventual life after Virgil van Dijk, also adding more depth at the back next season.
Ibrahima Konate remains a great option alongside Van Dijk, but is known for being an injury-prone player, and the same applies to Joe Gomez.
A centre-back has to be considered priority business for Liverpool, and speaking on NBC Sports [via Give Me Sport], Ornstein claimed that Huijsen is “in the mix” to be a Reds player in the summer transfer window:
“It’s going to be a really busy summer with recruitment. I think they’re in the mix for Dean Huijsen at Bournemouth, the centre-half, and Milos Kerkez, the left-back at Bournemouth. And perhaps a striker, with Darwin Nunez expected to leave as well.”
The most exciting centre-back option for Liverpool?
Huijsen is a special talent with enormous potential, already becoming a regular Premier League starter for Bournemouth at the age of just 19.
This season, he has started 20 league games for the Cherries, helping his side push for European football, and football talent scout Jacek Kulig has hailed him as “fantastic”. Meanwhile, Massimiliano Allegri lauded him during their time together at Juventus, saying:
“Huijsen entered the game serene and calm, he never played complicated passes and never put his teammate in difficulty. He reads the game like a great player. He does things like Ciro Ferrara. Gatti was booked, so I said maybe Leao would escape him on an occasion. And then, Huijsen came in and did really well. Luckily I found two players born in 2005 [Huijsen and Kenan Yildiz] thanks to the work conducted in the youth sector.”
There are understandably many of Europe’s biggest clubs eyeing a move for Huijsen at the end of the season, so if Liverpool could pip the rest to his signature, it could be a major coup.
The one-cap Spain international has the potential to develop into a world-class defender over time, if the Reds could snap him up, he could fill the eventual Van Dijk void to perfection.
