Liverpool have secured the signing of 15-year-old Finnish wonderkid Patrik Raitanen, who has confirmed that he has joined the Reds from FC Jazz via Twitter.
The Sun are reporting that as per reports coming out of Finland, Liverpool have secured the signing of highly-rated centre-back Patrik Raitanen. The player has himself confirmed via his official Twitter handle that he has departed from his academy setup at FC Jazz to join the Reds.
The report iterates that the player has penned a four-year deal with the club and is set to play under Steven Gerrard in the Under-18 squad – a brilliant feat considering he is still just 15.
“Proudest moment in my career and I hope there is plenty more coming. Can’t wait for the next season to start”, read his tweet.
The 15-year-old seems to be a long-time Liverpool fan, judging by his Twitter profile, with constant retweets of Liverpool’s official Twitter handle and other Liverpool-related news. The player would be chuffed at getting a chance to play under Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard – a mouth-watering prospect for any lifelong Reds supporter.
Proudest moment in my career and I hope there is plenty more coming⚽️ Can’t wait for the next season to start?? #LFC pic.twitter.com/lJe32o0APy
— Patrik Raitanen (@paacerii) June 1, 2017
Liverpool’s recent transfer activity revolving the imports of youngsters from various regions can be chalked down to the transfer embargo received by the Reds for illegal tapping of a Stoke City schoolboy – a ban that prohibits them from recruiting youngsters from the domestic region.
The Merseyside club have, thus, began looking abroad for quality additions to the youngsters, with the club linked to players like Dal Varesanovic and case in point, Patrik Raitanen among others.
Steven Gerrard has returned to Liverpool in a coaching role and it would be interesting to see how well he will be able to mentor the Under-18 side, a role which can lead up to a somewhat future role in management for the legend.
Liverpool’s newfound penchant, albeit forced, to recruit youngsters from abroad can perhaps add a new dimension to their youth sides and provide even better players to the first-team setup. Jurgen Klopp’s arrival has already seen a flurry of youngsters being afforded first-team opportunities.
The player can become the fourth Finnish player to feature for Liverpool’s first-team side, after Jari Litmanen, Sami Hyypia and Lauri Dalla Valle. Liverpool had, in legend Sami Hyypia, a centre-back that led the team ably and it would be interesting to see if Raitanen can follow in the player-turned-manager’s footsteps.