Liverpool face West Brom competition for Kristoffer Ajer

According to The Athletic, newly-promoted Premier League club West Bromwich Albion are interested in Celtic defensive star Kristoffer Ajer, who has been linked with Liverpool.

Having started out in his homeland Norway, Ajer moved to Celtic in 2016. Following a short loan spell at Kilmarnock, he has become a first-team regular at Parkhead and has played a vital role in the Hoops’ domestic domination year after year.

Till date, the 22-year-old has featured 133 times for Celtic so far, scoring five goals in the process. He has won three Scottish Premiership titles, three Scottish League Cups and two Scottish FA Cups so far.

Kristoffer Ajer has been a key player for Celtic (Getty Images)

Reports earlier this week claimed that Liverpool had expressed an interest in signing the 22-year-old Ajer. Following the departure of Dejan Lovren at the end of the 2019/20 season, the Reds are a person short in the centre-back department.

As things stand, Jurgen Klopp can only call upon Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip at the heart of the defence. But, considering Matip’s injury-prone nature, signing a new centre-back this summer would be good business for Liverpool.

Ajer, to that end, can be a handy option. While he not have played at the highest level, he does have some exposure to European football. Lest we forget, van Dijk, too, came to the Premier League from Celtic.

However, as per The Athletic, West Bromwich Albion are also interested in signing the Norwegian international. The Baggies, back in the Premier League, are keen on bolstering their defensive ranks with the addition of Ajer.

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The lure of playing at Anfield, under a manager like Jurgen Klopp, should be able to sway him to Anfield, if we do decide to act on the interest on Ajer.