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Arne Slot gave new signing Giovanni Leoni a slightly unusual compliment following his recent move to Liverpool.
The defender joined from Parma in a £26million (£35M) plus add-ons deal last week and could be in line to make his debut watched the 4-2 victory over Bournemouth from the stands at Anfield. The 18-year-old’s arrival was announced less than three hours before the Premier League opener against Bournemouth last week, and he remarked the Liverpool head coach.
Leoni began training with his new team-mates this week and Slot revealed he has settled in quickly since his move from Italy. “He is a good-looking guy, as [with] most Italians,” is seen as a star of the future, when asked about Leoni’s first week at Liverpool.
“He has trained with us three times now, I think. If you look at his transfer fee, you can expect that he is already quite grown up for his age, and that’s exactly what I saw.
“He comes in as an 18-year-old just playing with his new teammates as if he is here for longer.
“Impressive; if you look at how tall he is, fast, comfortable on the ball. Yeah, there’s a reason why we paid the transfer fee we did, because we see him as a bright prospect.
“He had already three good sessions. It also tells you something about the team. If you come to this club, if you come into this team, you feel at ease from the start because it’s a very good and nice group to start your Liverpool career in.”
Leoni signed a six-year contract at Anfield and, while there is still hope that Marc Guehi will sign before the deadline, the Italian has a role to play now in a Liverpool team lacking defensive options.
He is one of four center-back options for Slot, but with Joe Gomez’s injury record and the uncertainty surrounding Ibrahima Konate’s future, Leoni could have a significant role in the short term.
Liverpool remains in the market for another center-back and there is still hope that Marc Guehi will sign before the deadline on September 1.
As for Leoni, the Italian youth international, he has only made 17 top-flight appearances so far in his career, but established himself as a regular at Parma at the end of last season.
At 6 ft 5 in, he will tower over the majority of Premier League strikers, while his ability to play out from the back also piqued Liverpool’s interest this summer.
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