Hugo Ekitike admission confirms future

Liverpool seem to have taken a risk when Hugo Ekiteke joined in the summer for £79 million.

Of course, this includes his full transfer cost including surcharges. The guaranteed amount was £69 million. But that's too much for a striker who appears to have only had one good season under his belt.

It helped to realize that his outstanding campaign – 22 goals and 12 assists for Frankfurt – came last season, so his arrival on Merseyside was the result of a career-best performance. Although the 23-year-old still has a lot to prove and it will be some time before he proves his assessment to be correct.

But his importance to the Reds cannot be underestimated. He has scored six goals and provided one assist in 15 appearances this season, playing regularly and maintaining his fitness. Everything is fine.

His contract runs until 2031, so Liverpool will get a lot of years out of him. But his latest admission to the press has all but confirmed that he has what it takes to become a long-term player.

Ekitika is destined to become the ELITE

Talking to Lewis Steele on Daily mailThe Frenchman spoke about his ambitions as a footballer and how he has used all his experience in his career to become a more powerful attacking player.

After all, during his time at Paris Saint-Germain, he played alongside Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Lionel Messi and Neymar. And after that season he was next to Omar Marmoush.

He said, “I can't deal with [up to] people and say that I will do the same thing on the field as these players… But if I can [a] little, even without the ball, from their play, because I really watched them a lot during my time at Paris Saint-Germain. I'm still watching them. I try to take something from the players I love.

“[I try to copy] Messi's vision. Sometimes I try to see things earlier, before I get the ball. Naimar, I took some techniques and ball control skills. I caught Kylian's shots, he could make great runs without the ball. There are so many things, it’s difficult to list. I definitely took something from their game[s].

“I like to watch players and try to add something to my game to make me more complete.”

Essentially, on top of the talent that Ekitike possesses, Liverpool bought a sponge and that is probably the best thing they could do for their money. The modern game is constantly changing, and one-dimensional players will have a hard time adapting when things go against them.

The Frenchman is not one of them: he has so many different assets in his toolbox that he can always pose a threat, even if he has problems in the game. His adaptability can be viewed almost through the lens of his former Reds. Darwin Nunezwho is chaotic as a striker.

The 23-year-old has created subtle chaos, as evidenced by the different goals he scores and the different positions he finds himself in. Against a deep block, he can make quick passes and finishes, and is also excellent at breaking away when he has a lot of space. He is multifaceted.

To call him complete would be an exaggeration, but he is more than capable of being everything Liverpool could want in a striker. The underlying metrics of his performances have been good, with only Mbappe and Erling Haaland scoring higher in Liverpool's data models, according to the report, but it is Ekitike's willingness and desire to be the best player he can be that sets him apart from others.

His future at Liverpool is not in doubt. We've only been working with him for four months and, as mentioned earlier, his contract runs until 2031. But we shouldn't expect Liverpool to need to replace him before his current contract expires, given how adaptable he is. The Reds have a superstar.

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