Liverpool will have liked what they saw from a player reportedly on their radar yesterday evening.
Ever since the early part of last month, the Reds have been claimed to be on the trail of Juventus forward Kenan Yildiz. Jorg Schmadtke in particular is said to be a big fan of the 18-year-old, and has reportedly recommended him as a signing to Jurgen Klopp.
Well, if Jurgen had his eyes on Juve’s 6-1 thumping of Salernitana last night, then he’ll have seen exactly what Schmadtke is so excited about. As seen in a video posted by Viaplay UK on X, Yildiz underlined his quality with a superb solo goal on Thursday.
Picking the ball up in the left channel around 40-yards from goal, nothing is on for the Turkey international. He soon changes that though, tempting a Salernitana defender towards him before jinking in-between two of them.
That took him into the penalty area, but with three defenders in close vicinity, Yildiz still had a lot to do. No problem for Kenan, as it turned out. The teenager slipped past the final challenge easily, before smashing in with his right foot, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way. A special goal.
Yildiz shows his quality
Watching this back, you can see why Yildiz is pushing so hard to get into the Juventus first-team.
So far, the youngster has just had glimpses in Max Allegri’s starting XI. With just two Serie A starts to his name, the former Bayern Munich prospect is said to be looking elsewhere for more game time.
If that is what Yildiz wants though, then Liverpool doesn’t feel like the best fit.
As a left-side right-footed forward, he’d be way down the list at Anfield. Luis Diaz may have been struggling a little of late, but he’s still Klopp’s first choice there.
Meanwhile, Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo have all played off the left at various points. As a result, it feels unlikely that Liverpool can offer Yildiz what he’s after.
Having scored brilliantly last night, it’s likely that Allegri will now offer him more chances at the Allianz Stadium, anyway.
Even if those chances don’t come Yildiz’s way, Liverpool doesn’t feel like a natural next step.
With goals like this, the young man won’t be short of suitors, though. One heck of a goal from a player who looks destined for big things.
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