When Giovanni Leoni is “pencilled in” for Liverpool debut
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Image Credits: Imago ImagesGiovanni Leoni and his likely Liverpool debut date has been revealed.
He completed a £26 million move from Parma to Liverpool in August, signing a six-year contract with the Premier League champions
Parma’s CEO later revealed that Newcastle United had tabled a more lucrative bid, but Leoni chose Anfield over St James’ Park, turning down Newcastle’s “more advantageous” offer in favour of Liverpool’s project.
The teenager was called up to the Italy national team this September.
However, his excitement was curtailed when he was omitted from the matchday roster for both World Cup qualifiers against Estonia and Israel.
Although included in the initial 27-man group, the 18-year-old centre-back watched from the stands as Italy triumphed 5–0 over Estonia and edged a 5–4 win against Israel, with manager Gattuso opting for experience in defence despite professing confidence in Leoni’s abilities.
It would have been great for Leoni to get some minutes in his legs having not yet featured for Liverpool so far.
However, that looks like it could change soon.
Chris Bascombe of the Telegraph has reported that Leoni is set to make his debut for the Reds this month.
He reports that Southampton in the Carabao Cup third round on 17 September is the likely debut date:
“Youngster Giovanni Leoni was signed from Parma and is a top prospect who is pencilled in to make his debut in the Carabao Cup this September.”
It makes a lot of sense, as we saw last season that Arne Slot is not scared to do sweeping changes in cup competitions.
Meanwhile, Parma CEO Federico Cherubini confirmed that Newcastle United made an attempt to sign Leoni in the summer:
“I’ve always said we wanted to keep him, and he’s always said he’d be happy to stay here,” Cherubini said to Gazzetta di Parma.
“We even turned down an offer from Newcastle, which was more advantageous than the one Liverpool eventually made,”
“When the Reds came forward, our plans changed: both because the offer was very attractive and because the player made it clear he was very happy to take advantage of this opportunity.”
“On the one hand, it’s disappointing to lose such a promising young player, but on the other, we’re proud to have believed in him in unsuspecting times, when he’d only played a few games in Serie B.”
Leoni featured in 17 Serie A matches during his debut season, attracting interest from both Milan clubs, but has chosen to take his first step abroad.
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