Liverpool continued their merry ways in the Champions League, as Arne Slot seems incapable of making a mistake at the moment.
Everyone might have expected the Reds to beat Bayer Leverkusen, but a 4-0 score-line might not be something anyone would have predicted.
News – Liverpool prepare to agree £16.6m signing of £50.1m player – Report
Led by a Luis Diaz hattrick, the Merseysiders trashed Xabi Alonso’s impressive side. As the fantastic form continues on the pitch, off it, Liverpool continue to be linked with players for the future and one name that is doing the rounds recently is Barca midfield star, Marc Casado.
As per Caught Offside, Liverpool are now eager to secure the signing of the breakout La Masia graduate.
The player is said to have an £83.4m release clause in his contract with the Catalan club and is generating significant interest from the Premier League.
Casado is the latest in a long line of talents to have come through La Masia in recent years. The famed Barcelona academy is a talent production factory that has been in overdrive in recent seasons, producing the likes of Lamine Yamal, Ansu Fati, Pau Cubarsi, Fermin Lopez, Hector Fort, Marc Bernal and Alejandro Balde to name a few.
Casado was not a prodigy breaking through at 17, like some of the other La Masia wonderkids. He has done the hard yards in lower divisions and at 21, he has finally broken into the first team and he is not looking back.
His impact in such a short span has been incredible on the first team. Hansi Flick, the Barcelona coach recently labelled the Spaniard “incredible”. He said:
“Casado is just incredible. He is so good defensively, but also on the ball. He is so willing to get better and learn all the time. Excellent mentality: a pure La Masia product.”
The 21-year-old is has been one of the best defensive midfielders in the world so far this season. However, his game is much more than just that.
He has provided a hattrick of assists against Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Espanyol in three consecutive games for the club.
At such a young age, the main thing that stands out about Marc Casado is the incredibly calm head on his shoulders. He almost always seems to make the right decision on the pitch and has mastered the art of the slide tackle.
However, Barcelona almost never let their talented players leave and it will be a huge surprise if Liverpool manage to sign Casado in the near future.
