Fabrizio Romano has said that Liverpool are among ‘many top clubs’ who are ‘following’ a young British talent who’s been likened to a former Premier League-winning captain.
The Italian journalist stated in his latest daily briefing for CaughtOffside that the Reds are among a plethora of suitors in pursuit of Levi Colwill, who’s been impressing on loan at Brighton from Chelsea this season.
However, the Blues are determined to keep him at the club, as they view him as an important part of their plans for next term.
Romano said: “I’m sure it is not just Liverpool but many top clubs around the world and not just in England are following Levi Colwill, he’s an excellent talent. We will always have this kind of news on him because it’s normal to follow Colwill.
“But again, at this stage, Chelsea consider him as key part of the squad next season and have no intention to let him go.”
As noted in an article for The Athletic last year, Colwill has been dubbed ‘the next John Terry’ in some quarters, an unsurprising comparison as a centre-back at Chelsea but a big compliment nonetheless given the career the former Blues captain enjoyed.
As per FBref, the 20-year-old stands out for his composure on the ball and his ability in the air. He ranks among the top 1% of positional peers in Europe’s five main leagues over the past year for passes completed per 90 (82.78) and the top 2% for aerial duels won per game (3.67).
However, as impressive as he’s been in recent months, reliability could be a concern – he’s only made eight Premier League starts on loan at Brighton during an injury-affected campaign (Transfermarkt).
Also, as mentioned by Romano and also reported by football.london last week, Chelsea are determined to tie down Colwill’s future with a possible long-term contract offer.
It seems that if Liverpool are fully intent on trying to sign the 20-year-old, they’ll need to put forward a near-irrefutable proposal.