Stefan Bajcetic father would like Liverpool starlet to ‘play for a top club, like Barcelona or Liverpool’ | OneFootball

Barcelona are currently scrambling in the transfer market in order to see if they can add a midfielder before the end of the transfer window at midnight on Friday, following a season-ending injury to 17-year-old midfielder Marc Bernal. Liverpool starlet Stefan Bajcetic emerged as an early favourite.

Bajcetic was set to go out on loan at any rate, with a deal agreed with RB Salzburg, but on Wednesday night, Barcelona made a €4m loan bid for the 19-year-old. However Barcelona’s salary limit situation may prevent a deal going through.

His father, Srdjan Bajcetic, spoke to RAC1 (via MD) on Wednesday eveing, and explained where they were.

“The news about Barça’s interest surprised us all. We weren’t expecting this news. We had everything ready to go to Salzburg.”

In terms of negotiations, the senior Bajcetic noted “I don’t know, really, I can’t tell you anything because we don’t know anything, we don’t have any information.”

“Every parent wants the best for their child and obviously I would like to one day be able to play for a team as big as Barcelona or Liverpool,” he noted.

Part of the reason for Bajcetic’s availability has been a series of injuries that have hit both of his last two seasons, preventing him from much continuity.

“Two years ago he started a lot of games with Klopp at Liverpool, and he showed that at 17 he could even play in the Champions League. I know that Barca is different and it is a more complicated club, but I think he does have the mentality to play in a big team. Last year he had a problem with development, with growth, it wasn’t an injury but a growth problem in the pubis and that’s why he was out for a long time.”

He also explained that Bajcetic used to be a central defender, but was moved forward due to his height.

“A few years ago he played as a centre-back and at Liverpool they turned him into a midfielder, because in the English League a centre-back if he isn’t 1.90m tall isn’t much use, and when they moved him to midfield we were very surprised.”

It does look however as if Barcelona will miss out on Bajcetic. President Joan Laporta must get a sponsorship deal with Nike over the line in the next 24 hours and then have it approved by La Liga before he can make any guarantees on player registrations. The injury to Bernal has sent the club into a mad dash against the clock, but there is already a deal in place with RB Salzburg.