Liverpool-linked defender is now on his way to England

A defender who’s been linked with Liverpool in recent days has now agreed a deal to move to the Premier League.

The Reds and Aston Villa have both been keen on Juventus youngster Dean Huijsen (Football Insider), but it looks as if neither club will win the race for his signature.

The Athletic reported on Thursday afternoon that it’s Bournemouth who’ve clinched a deal worth £12.6m for the Dutch teenager, who’s now set to undergo a medical with the south coast outfit and sign a five-year contract at the Vitality Stadium.

Will there be a feeling among the Liverpool hiearchy that they’ve missed the boat on Huijsen?

The fee quoted by The Athletic is significantly smaller than Juventus’ reported asking price mentioned by other outlets, so Bournemouth may feel that they’ve bagged themselves a bargain, assuming there are no late hitches to scupper the deal.

Follow Empire of the Kop on Instagram (@empireofthekop) HERE

Huijsen has only played 15 matches in senior football but those have been spread across two of Italy’s biggest sides in Juve and Roma (where he was on loan last season), and ex-Bianconeri boss Max Allegri has likened him to club legend Ciro Ferrara, an icon in Turin having won five league titles and the Champions League there.

While Liverpool fans may feel despondent at missing out on him, in truth the Cherries would probably have been in a better position to offer him regular game-time immediately, whereas the 19-year-old may well have been viewed as a long-term prospect at Anfield who’d need to be patient for his opportunities.

With his move to Bournemouth now looking a near-certainty, Richard Hughes (who ironically left the Vitality Stadium to take the sporting director role on Merseyside) will have to now switch his attention to other centre-back targets over the next five weeks.

EOTK Close-up with John Welsh: ‘a local lad who lived his dream’ and Slot’s LFC predictions