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As Liverpool looks to the future beyond Virgil van Dijk, they've placed their faith in young talent. This video details Giovanni Leoni's career, from his early days in Italy to his big-money move and unfortunate debut injury, assessing if he truly has what it takes to become a Liverpool legend.
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0:00
Virgil van Dijk turns 35 this summer, and while that's still quite young in most workplaces
0:04
in elite men's professional football, more often than not, that means you're over the hill
0:09
The Dutchman has spent the past eight years at Anfield, winning everything there is to win
0:13
He's been a tremendous servant to the Reds, and if this season is his last
0:17
he's earned the right to ride off into the sun on his own terms. What Liverpool have done to guard against van Dijk's inevitable departure
0:23
whether it be this summer or next, is sign two of Europe's best young central defenders
0:28
That should do it. Giovanni Leone and Jeremy Jacquet are the young defenders with the unenviable task of showing Liverpool fans what life will be like after Van Dijk
0:37
I'm Joe Donoghue, welcome back to the Boys A Bit Special, a 4-4-2 series highlighting the best and brightest teenagers in world football
0:43
There's the header, it's the 18-year-old Giovanni Leone. Giovanni Leone probably didn't envisage the start to his Liverpool career going as terribly as it did
0:52
On his debut, Leone suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury, ruling him out for the entire 2025-26 season
0:58
How's your luck? What was billed as a season of gradual integration
1:02
learning the ropes from Van Dijk and Ibrahima Canate, quickly became a year of rehabilitation, recuperation and time in the gym
1:09
Leone is expected to return by the time 2026-27 rolls around and a full pre-season will likely do him a world of good
1:17
But as a result of his injury, Liverpool fans have seen very little so can't really see how suited he is to replacing the ever-present Van Dijk
1:24
The scouting team at 442 HQ, both of which definitely exist, have palled over the data and the clips to bring you the following
1:31
And we feel quite confident in saying, drumroll please, the boy's a bit special
1:36
Yeah, yeah, he said it, he said it! Leone came through at local club Padova in Italy's lower leagues
1:41
He made his debut there at 16 years old back in March 2023, making him the youngest professional footballer in Italy that season
1:48
He joined Sampdoria for 1.5 million euros, spent half a season in Serie B before top flight side Palmer said
1:55
Actually, we'd quite like that big brute of a centre-half you've just bought Sampdoria
1:59
You know what? We'll pay four times what you did. Fast forward 12 months and after a season battling relegation
2:05
Liverpool deemed Leone worth 26 million pounds and worthy of a six-year contract
2:10
Nice one, Gigi. So what was it that convinced the Reds to spend so heavily on a teenage defender relatively unproven in top football Well Leone stands at 6 foot 5 inches tall and is probably the only Liverpool player who can challenge Van Dijk when it comes to aerial defending
2:27
That will have played a big part in Michael Edwards' decision to bring him to Anfield
2:31
He's a very good judge of a player as Edwards, but sometimes it's as simple as
2:35
bloody hell, look at that massive mobile defender. He does what our Virgil does
2:40
Leone is, first and foremost, an excellent competitor. battling for possession is what he came out the womb doing
2:45
Some of you may have already seen the semi-viral photo of Leone with his hand inside the collar of Romelu Lukaku's shirt
2:51
The Belgians sat down looking uncharacteristically helpless on the turf. He won't be bullied
2:57
Leone is a physical, playground bully-style defender, not afraid to throw his weight around
3:02
He might find himself in hot water with referees occasionally, but more often than not, he's going to need that physicality to compete
3:08
against the Premier League's growing list of supersized centre-forwards. Why is it important Lyon is a tall, physically strong presence
3:15
at the heart of Liverpool's defence moving forwards? Well, because that's what it's been predicated on for the past eight years
3:21
Even this season, when some people would have you believe that Van Dijk's powers are on the way in
3:25
the Liverpool skipper has the best aerial win rate of any player in the Premier League
3:30
75% according to Opta. Second in the list is Aston Villa's Amadou Anana
3:34
although he's contested significantly fewer. And third, Ibrahima Kanate. You could go as far to say it's a pretty big prerequisite for whoever fills Van Dijk's size 14s
3:45
And Leonie is no slouch either. Watch any highlight reel of his time at Parma and you'll see a defender who saunters back to recover possession
3:53
putting his huge stride to good use. But, if needs be, he can turn the afterburners on whilst going shoulder to shoulder
3:59
He's the type of defender whose self-assurance in the way he carries himself breathes confidence into his teammates
4:04
Of course, by the time Leonie returns from injury, he'll have been out of practice for some time
4:09
Almost a year, in fact. That's likely to have taken its toll on his physicality, mental readiness and match fitness
4:16
So don't expect him to be in from the start on the opening day of next season or hitting the heights, pun very much intended, straight away
4:23
Over time, though, everything points towards Leone becoming the Van replacement
4:27
Liverpool will sorely need once the Dutchman calls time on his Anfield stint
4:31
Do you want more from 442 Then why not join our community with a completely free membership Loads of benefits including extra content quizzes Q fan discussions plus plenty more
4:42
All you have to do is click the link in the description and sign up with your email
4:46
Jeremy Jacquet and Liverpool have got their man. The temptation to pronounce the surname of Liverpool's newest signing like a type of potato or an overcoat is overwhelming
4:55
But this is a very serious football operation at 442, so you won't be getting any of that here
5:00
We're reliably informed it is pronounced Jeremy Jacquet, if you'll pardon the Inspector Clouseau-esque delivery
5:07
He's not on Merseyside yet, Jacquet that is, not Steve Martin, but he is joining the Premier League this summer
5:13
Jacquet currently plays for Stade René, and hopefully I've managed to say that better than Ashley Cole did during a UEFA draw that one time
5:20
Stade René. He recently turned 20, stands at 6ft 2 inches tall and cost Liverpool £55m, plus a further £5m in add-ons
5:31
Rennes, the north-western French city where the club is based, have one of the most prolific academy setups in modern football history
5:37
Ousmane Dembele, Desiree Due, Eduardo Camavinga, Jorginho Ruta and Matisse Tell are some of the team's recent academy graduates
5:44
But that's not all. Rafinha, Jeremy Doku, Ismail Assar, Sylvain Wiltor and even Petr Cech have all passed through the club during the early part of their careers, before going on to achieve big things in the Premier League and further afield
5:57
I'd like to take this brief moment to say sorry for including a reference to Ismail Assar in what is ostensibly a Liverpool video. My bad. Let's get back on task
6:05
In January 2024, Jacquet made his Ryan debut before being sent on loan to Clermont-Foot, who were destined for the drop
6:12
Over the next 12 months at Clermont, with appearances in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, it was decided that Jacquet had developed enough to be recalled by parent club Rennes
6:20
Recently appointed head coach Habib Bey, once the subject of a Happy Days-themed terrace chant
6:24
Figure It Out, said to the Rennes hierarchy, Go and get the Jacquet
6:29
They paid €900,000 to end his loan early, and the teenager was thrust straight into a Ligue 1 relegation battle with Rennes
6:36
It was a gamble that paid off almost immediately. Jacquet slotted in on the left-hand side of a back three, wearing number 97, and Rennes
6:43
didn't concede for the first 355 minutes with Jacquet on the pitch. Rennes subsequently
6:48
climbed from 15th three positions off the bottom of the table to 11th Job done Jacquet was actually in the same youth teams as the aforementioned Matisse Tell and Desiree Dwey who feel as though they been around the top levels of European football for the past few years at least
7:02
Xhaka, on the other hand, is only breaking through now, having had to deal with persistent injuries and growing pains as a youngster
7:09
At the time of recording, Xhaka also happens to be injured, picking up a shoulder issue shortly after completing his Liverpool move
7:15
No, it had nothing to do with the pen he used to sign the contract. Needless to say, his injury record is perhaps something to keep an eye on
7:22
particularly as he acclimatises to the physically demanding nature of English football next season
7:27
From a stylistic point of view, Jacquet is slightly different to Leone. Where the Italian dominates in physical duels
7:33
Jacquet is an excellent reader of the game, snuffing out danger by anticipating where it'll arise
7:38
That isn't to say Jacquet is some pushover though, because he isn't. He does both
7:42
It's just his ability to intercept, be quick over the ground and get to a loose ball before his opponent
7:48
is definitely one of his standout attributes. Supposedly Chelsea were running Liverpool close for Jacquet's signature
7:54
Arsenal were linked too. But the likelihood of regular minutes at Anfield swung it in the Reds' favour
7:59
Ibrahima Canate also happens to be one of Jacquet's favourite players. Nobody tell him about the expiring contract though
8:05
More importantly, given the sheer volume of young central defenders, many of them French, on Chelsea's books at the moment
8:11
we'd be inclined to agree that picking Liverpool was probably the smart move. Van Dijk will be a huge miss to Liverpool when the time comes
8:18
But the good thing about being a globally recognised club with immense resources is you're able to sign the next Van Dijk from under the noses of your closest rivals
8:26
Leone is already in the building, albeit hobbling about on crutches, and Jacquet will be too sooner rather than later, not on crutches
8:33
Will they play together next year? Probably not all that often. There'll be a fair amount of hand-holding by Van Dijk if he stays
8:40
And don't rule out Liverpool going for another, more experienced head at centre-back
8:43
to bridge the gap between the old guard and the new. particularly if Canate moves on to pastures new
8:49
Remember to subscribe to 442 for more Boys A Bit Special, unique stories, wonder kids, scout reports
8:55
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9:00
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9:04
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9:11
Until next time, bye for now
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