Liverpool's Bold Midfield Gamble: Bajcetic Set for Celta Vigo Exit
Liverpool are stripping back their midfield again – and this time, there will be no replacement.
Curtis Jones has already gone, sold to Inter Milan in a deal worth £30 million. Now Stefan Bajcetic is heading for the door as well. Yet Anfield’s hierarchy are standing firm: no new holding midfielder is coming in.
In a squad already light on specialist defensive options, it is a bold call.
Midfield reshaped – without a signing
Right now, Wataru Endo is the only recognised defensive midfielder in the squad. The 31-year-old, however, is not viewed as a regular starter ahead of Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai or Alexis Mac Allister.
On paper, the situation looked tailor-made for Liverpool to dip into the market for a No. 6 after Jones’ departure. Instead, the club have gone the other way.
Graeme Bailey revealed earlier this week that Liverpool had decided against signing another midfielder, and that stance has now been echoed by The Athletic’s Liverpool reporter, James Pearce.
Pearce wrote that, despite growing noise around midfield reinforcements – noise that only grew louder after the dramatic 2-2 draw with Newcastle – senior figures at the club insist their priority is out wide in attack, not in the middle of the pitch. The message from inside Anfield is clear: there are no plans to replace Jones.
Teenage promotion, senior responsibility
The decision hinges on faith in youth. Specifically, Trey Nyoni.
The teenager has effectively been promoted to fourth in the midfield pecking order. Szoboszlai, Gravenberch and Mac Allister will scrap for the two starting roles. Nyoni sits just behind them, with Endo now viewed as fifth-choice cover.
Liverpool believe Nyoni is ready to take on a bigger role this season, rather than blocking his pathway with another signing. Unless there is a late change of heart, only the forward line will be strengthened before the window shuts.
Another exit: Bajcetic set for Celta Vigo return
All of that makes the next move even more striking.
With no new midfielder planned, Liverpool are still ready to let another option leave. Stefan Bajcetic, one of the few genuine defensive-minded players in the squad, is on the verge of a permanent return to Celta Vigo.
Injuries have wrecked his rhythm in England and stalled what once looked like a rapid rise. Now, with the 21-year-old entering the final year of his contract, Liverpool are prepared to cut ties.
Trusted reporter Matteo Moretto reports that a club-to-club agreement is already in place. Liverpool will receive only a nominal fee, but they have secured a sell-on clause – a key part of the deal that could pay off handsomely if Bajcetic rebuilds his career back in Spain.
Fabrizio Romano has added that Celta and Bajcetic are close to agreeing personal terms, leaving the move edging towards completion.
Liverpool, then, are choosing risk over reassurance in the middle of the pitch. With Jones gone, Bajcetic set to follow, and no new holding midfielder on the horizon, the question is no longer about plans. It is about whether this midfield, as constructed, can carry a title-chasing season.
