Liverpool look to have pulled out of a £40m transfer to sign Karim Adeyemi but that might be because FSG is waiting to sign the ‘next Erling Haaland’ instead.
Liverpool’s relationship with Red Bull clubs is notorious. You only have to look at the core of Jürgen Klopp’s squad to see players who came through the Red Bull system in almost every department.
From Ibrahima Konaté in defense to Naby Keïta in midfield, and Takumi Minamino and Sadio Mané in attack, FSG has dipped into the talent pool of the energy drink brand. When a promising new Red Bull teenager emerges onto the scene, it is almost inevitable that Liverpool will keep a close eye on their progress.
One such example is Karim Adeyemi, who was courted by Liverpool before his move to Red Bull Salzburg, and who was linked with a transfer to Anfield earlier this season. However, it seems like Liverpool is unlikely to pursue him this summer, despite an extremely strong campaign so far — one where Adeyemi has even caught the eye in the Champions League.
However, with a £40m purported asking price, Liverpool’s transfer decision makes sense, considering Adeyemi is still not the finished product. Especially, as there may be another Red Bull forward who would be better suited to Liverpool’s gegenpress system than Adeyemi, in the form of Benjamin Šeško.
A recent report by Goal has suggested Liverpool is closely monitoring the forward’s progress. He has been described as the next Erling Haaland. Commenting on the rumors and the comparisons with Haaland, Šeško made an interesting remark:
“My teammates at the club tell me that Haaland and I are very similar, especially in terms of speed,” Šeško is quoted as saying in Goal’s report. Before adding:
“Most of them even tell me that I’m better than him!”
This season, Šeško has scored eight goals and registered seven assists for Salzburg in 28 games playing 1241 minutes and averaging 1.09 goal contributions per 90. Still just 18 years of age, and already standing at 6 foot four inches, the comparisons to Haaland are easy to see.
Like Haaland, despite his height, Šeško is not a one-dimensional player. He is extremely technical, has a great burst of pace and he is capable of involving himself in his team’s build-up play, too. Last season he clocked a speed of 36.2km/ph in Austria’s second tier while playing for Salzburg’s feeder club Liefering — a speed faster than Kylian Mbappé that year.
He is also a hard worker with a great work ethic, according to his former coach, Aleš Mežnaršič:
“We also did several individual sessions with Beny [Šeško] which were based on finishing from different situations. Lucky for us he was very hard-working and he wanted to train sometimes even more than others,” Aleš Mežnaršič told First Time Finish.
With his innate talent, and physical ability as well as his encouraging progress at Salzburg at such a young age, Šeško has the potential to go all the way. Something Mežnaršič staunchly backs him to be able to do:
“If he continues to work hard, stays psychologically strong, and surrounds himself with positive people, he will play at the top level very very quickly and then for a long time.”
For that reason, perhaps Liverpool’s reticence to make a move for Adeyemi can be explained by the pure fact that FSG is waiting for the German’s successor instead. Only time will tell.
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