In-demand defender Josko Gvardiol has admitted that he was a boyhood fan of Liverpool, and that Jurgen Klopp’s side ‘remain in my heart’ ahead of what is set to be a drawn out battle for his signature.
The RB Leipzig defender was subject to Chelsea interest last summer, and a good World Cup saw his stock rise even further, with Real Madrid and Manchester City both now interested in adding the 21-year-old to their squads, and a predicted fee of in excess of 100m euros.
But, asked about his boyhood club, Gvardiol admitted that he still has a soft spot for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, with he and his dad watching a lot of games together.
“That would definitely be Liverpool”, he explained. “Since I was little, I watched a lot of Liverpool matches with my dad and we covered every season in detail. It is a club that has remained in my heart.”
The Croatian also revealed just how close a move to Chelsea had been over the summer, adding that “last summer a transfer was close and they simply kept me. I hope to spend these six months with them [Leipzig]. Chelsea did not give up, but it was agreed that we would go for the winter”.
A move to Chelsea has since broken down, with the defender’s World Cup performances raising his price tag to the point where the Blues felt it impossible to complete a deal, instead moving to sign Monaco’s Benoit Badiashile.
“There’s still plenty of time, so we’ll see… Nobody presented anything to me. But I’m not in a hurry, we have time, let them arrange the plan and we’ll see.”
“I‘m not in a hurry. I’m at Leipzig and we still have six months to finish the season and to win something. And then we will look further to the future…”
