Cardiff City Fail To Re-Sign Marko Grujic

It’s been confirmed by journalists that the final days of this transfer window will see Liverpool focusing on outgoings and trimming the team of those they deem surplus to requirements. One player whose fate is very much in the air is Marko Grujic. The Serbian was Klopp’s first acquisition upon moving to Merseyside, but the hardworking midfielder never quite made his mark with the first team.

Last season, he was sent out on loan in January to Cardiff City, where he helped the Bluebirds secure promotion to the Premier League. Cardiff boss Neil Warnock was confident that they could bring him back on another loan deal, but it seems that it’s not to be this time.

“Grujic looks like he will stay put... I think he would be better off here but it is a contract issue, I understand his point of view,” Warnock said.

”Liverpool have four competitions before Christmas and he can play in those without being named in the 25-man squad.

“I have missed out on a couple of targets waiting for him, it is disappointing as everything was agreed with Liverpool. But sometimes fate intervenes.”

The “contract issue” appears to be that Liverpool want Grujic to sign an extension on his contract, which is otherwise set to expire in 2020, before allowing him to go out on loan again. This pressure is coming because the club hope to recoup some of the £5.1m they paid for him back in January 2016 before his current contract winds down. Grujic has so far refused to do this, as is his right, but that meant that the anticipated move to Cardiff City has not panned out. It looks as though the player may stick it out in the reserves again this season.

Grujic is set to miss tonight’s pre-season match against Napoli due to “hamstring tightness.”