CA Talleres president Andres Fassi confirmed Liverpool made contact for Colombian defensive wonderkid Kevin Mantilla
CA Talleres president Andreas Fassi confirmed the interest of Liverpool in signing their central defender Kevin Mantilla. The 20-year-old Colombian wonderkid recently joined Talleres and Fassi rejected the idea of entertaining a January move for the player.
The Reds lost Joel Matip to a season-long injury earlier last month in the 4-3 Premier League victory over Fulham. Liverpool also lost their specialist left-backs Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas to injury as well. Furthermore, vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold sustained a knee injury and he is out for a few weeks.
However, youngsters such as Jarell Quansah and Conor Bradley stepped up in the absence of these senior team players. They have dealt with the injury crisis this season but after Matip’s potential departure in the summer, they need recruitment.
Speaking to La Voz(h/t Mirror), Fassi confirmed the interest from Liverpool and that they asked for Mantilla’s physical records. He said:
“It’s true, they [Liverpool] have been following him for four months now. And they asked us for information about his physical records.”
Mantilla has made nine appearances for Talleres in all competitions, securing his spot as a regular player in the team. Standing at 1.91 metres, he is well-built despite his young age to challenge in both the aerial and ground duels.
The Colombian U20 is a modern-day central defender with good technical ability on the ball to distribute passes. He has close control and the ability to make progressive runs from the deep to build attacks from the back.
Liverpool negocia el traspaso del defensa Colombiano, jugador del Talleres, Kevin Mantilla (20). [Mirror] pic.twitter.com/SpiyuAspAj
— Futbol de Inglaterra (@Mercado_Ingles) January 14, 2024
Mantilla makes good recoveries to compensate for being out of position and puts in timely tackles. However, the youngster is still raw and needs the experience, patience, and time to develop his skills.
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Mantilla could be a textbook signing by Liverpool scouts after vigorous assessment of a player from an obscure league. However, it remains uncertain whether Klopp prefers someone more experienced, given the presence of Quansah in the team.
