Liverpool's Midfield Reshuffle: Bajcetic Returns to Celta Vigo
Liverpool’s midfield reshuffle has claimed another casualty, and the club have made a firm call on whether anyone new is coming in to replace him.
While the noise around Anfield is all about wide forwards and big-money winger targets, the real surgery is happening in the centre of the pitch. Quietly, but decisively.
Curtis Jones has already gone, joining Inter Milan in a £30m package. Now another home-grown project is heading for the exit.
Bajcetic back to Celta – on Liverpool’s terms
Stefan Bajcetic is set to return to Celta Vigo, the club that first nurtured him, after Liverpool agreed a permanent deal with the La Liga side.
Reporter Matteo Moretto revealed that the two clubs have struck an agreement that heavily favours Celta in the short term. Liverpool will receive virtually nothing up front, with the move structured around bonuses and a sell-on percentage rather than a traditional fee.
The Reds, though, have protected their upside. They retain a percentage of any future sale, a clear bet that Bajcetic’s talent might yet bloom away from the relentless demands of English football.
Bajcetic, 21, has endured a brutal spell in England, his progress repeatedly stalled by injuries. He has played fewer than 60 matches across the last four years, and with only a year left on his Liverpool contract, the club’s willingness to accept a nominal package is easy to understand.
A medical with Celta Vigo is expected soon, and Fabrizio Romano has reported that the Spanish club are now closing in on an agreement over personal terms with the midfielder.
If he can stay fit and re-establish himself in Spain, that sell-on clause could age very well for Liverpool.
A thin defensive core – and no replacement coming
Bajcetic’s departure leaves Liverpool with six senior central midfield options: Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Trey Nyoni, Wataru Endo and Bajcetic himself, who is now on his way out.
Strip that back and the picture changes. Only Endo and Bajcetic are natural defensive midfielders, and both sit low in the current pecking order. One is leaving. The other is fifth choice.
You would expect that to trigger a move. It won’t.
Despite the double loss of Jones and Bajcetic, Liverpool have decided against signing a new midfielder. The club are backing what they already have – and, crucially, who is coming through.
TEAMtalk revealed earlier this week that teenager Trey Nyoni is being promoted up the internal ladder. He will start the season as fourth choice in the midfield hierarchy.
Szoboszlai, Gravenberch and Mac Allister are set to contest the two starting roles, with Nyoni next in line and Endo behind him.
The Athletic’s James Pearce has since reinforced that stance, reporting that senior club sources insist the priority remains strengthening the wide attacking positions, even after the chaotic 2-2 draw with Newcastle that reignited calls for midfield reinforcements.
“They don’t intend to replace Jones,” Pearce reported, with Liverpool viewing Nyoni as ready to play a bigger part this season. Unless there is a late change of heart, only the forward line will be bolstered.
So Liverpool will walk into the new campaign lighter in midfield numbers, heavier in faith in a teenager, and with another academy hope sent back to Spain to rebuild his career.
Risk, or ruthless clarity of vision? The answer will arrive when the fixtures pile up and the engine room is asked to carry the weight of a season.
