Liverpool have joined Manchester City and Manchester United in setting their sights on Leny Yoro.
The 18-year-old centre-back comes highly rated, according to French outlet Le10sport, with him being one of the most appreciated profiles in world football.
Après les Manchester, c'est au tour de Liverpool d'entrer dans le concret pour Leny Yoro (Lille) !https://t.co/OSnxwCZmym
— Alexis BERNARD (@AlexisBernard10) December 14, 2023
“According to our information, Liverpool has several profiles in mind. Young players who are among the greatest hopes on the planet in their position,” Alex Bernard wrote for the publication.
“In Ligue 1, the Reds have set their sights on a profile that is already making the whole world salivate: Leny Yoro.
“As we revealed, LOSC is already discussing with Manchester United and Manchester City for the 18-year-old Mastiff defender. A file in which we must now count on Liverpool, determined to play a role in the future of the Frenchman.”
The Merseysiders are understood to be particularly keen on signing a left-sided centre-back, though the long-term injury to Joel Matip may force a rethink.
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Better-suited to replacing Matip
A look over the teenager’s stats suggests he’d be better suited filling the gap left by our injured Cameroonian than by being an understudy to Virgil van Dijk.
Moving beyond the defender’s poor aerial ability (19th percentile for aerials won), Yoro has some truly remarkable possession stats that mark him out as a potentially superb right-sided centre-back.
FBref has recorded the following statistics that illustrate this point particularly well: the Frenchman registers in the 94th percentile for carries and 81st percentile for progressive carrying distance.
That compares more closely with Matip’s numbers (86th percentile for carries and 96th percentile for progressive carrying distance). Van Dijk on the other hand:
The Lille youngster may very well be one to keep a close eye on ahead of January.
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