Liverpool complete ‘transfer’ days after deadline as club ‘proud’ to do deal | Football | Sport
Liverpool have made another addition to their ranks despite the transfer window slamming shut on Monday. It was a fairly quiet January for the Anfield giants, who didn’t recruit any senior players for the second half of the season. They signed two young defenders in Ifeanyi Ndukwe and Mor Talla Ndiaye, but they will go into the youth system rather than the first-team squad.
Another deal followed on the final day of the window as Liverpool reached an agreement with Rennes to sign Jeremy Jacquet in a £60million swoop. However, the young defender won’t officially join the Reds until the end of the season. Despite the window being closed, those in power at Anfield have moved to bolster their scouting ranks with an under-the-radar addition.
They have poached talent-spotter Laurens Paulussen from Belgian side KV Mechelen, with the 35-year-old set to carry out his work in continental Europe.
Mechelen issued a statement confirming the news, saying: “The final transfer of the winter transfer window is a fact. Scout and former player Laurens Paulussen is making the move to Liverpool Football Club.
“Laurens will start working for Liverpool FC as a scout in Belgium and the Netherlands. The club is particularly proud and wishes Laurens every success.”
Paulussen was a left-back during his playing days and spent time on the books of Anderlecht as a youngster. He began his senior career with SK Beveren, making 85 appearances before joining Westerlo in 2012. He later played for Mechelen between 2014 and 2018.
Following his retirement in 2022 after playing for KFC Sint-Lenaarts, he has spent the past three years managing scouting operations at the Belgian top-flight club.
Arne Slot’s side made last-minute attempts to bolster their squad in January, though they were left frustrated in their efforts to land Lutsharel Geertruida.
On Thursday, Reds manager Slot commented: “I think I’ve said that we’ve tried to strengthen the squad, so that probably tells you [I wanted players] and I don’t think I was the only one who wanted that. But it’s always about availability and the right player.
“We do have discussions about what is good for the short and for the long term of the club and now, for example, Jeremy Jacquet wasn’t available for the winter, but he was for the summer.
“We’ve made a decision to sign him because we think he’s a really good signing for the future of this club. I’m very happy with the squad. Let that be clear. But it’s all clear and obvious, that we have three long-term injuries [Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, Alexander Isak].
“That’s why we’ve tried to strengthen the squad in winter break and the player you mentioned [Geertruida], in the end, wasn’t available. But we’ve tried to strengthen the squad – that is clear.
“And that tells you that we think that it would have helped us. But it should be possible that we’re not gonna sign players that are not good enough to play for this club.”
