Liverpool have secured the services of Colombian youngster Anderson Arroyo. The club has confirmed the signing of the 18-year-old starlet, who is highly-rated left-back, from the Colombian club Fortaleza. The teenager will go out on loan to Mallorca, who are currently plying their trade in the third tier of Spanish football. It is believed that the duration of the loan deal will be 18 months. However, the Reds will require a work permit to allow him to play for the club.
The Merseyside club has confirmed that an agreement to sign Arroyo was reached last month after the youngster had a trial with the Reds on an U18s tour of Germany in 2016. Jurgen Klopp’s side has now received the necessary paperwork to make an official announcement of the promising teenager’s transfer.
At 18, Arroyo has already featured in 22 matches for Fortaleza where he made his first-team debut as a 15-year-old. He has represented the Colombian national team at both U17 and U20 levels. He is set to return to Liverpool in the summer of 2019 when his current loan spell at RCD Mallorca B expires and the Reds will hope that they can secure a work permit for the Colombian by then.
Jurgen Klopp’s Reds are currently sitting in 3rd place in the Premier League standings after being denied a victory at the death in their match against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. The Merseyside club finds themselves just above Chelsea, who are in the fourth spot with a point separating the two teams at the moment. The addition of Anderson Arroyo will undoubtedly bolster their defensive options in a few years time but for now, they have to hope the South American youngster can develop his game in Spanish football and come back as a stronger player capable of breaking into their first-team.
Klopp has already shown that he has made a habit of developing promising talents into future superstars as evidenced by the rapid rise of Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane among many others recently. Although, Arroyo can’t be considered as such a talent, yet he has immense potential which Liverpool could look to utilise in the coming years. Their German boss has shown faith in youngsters before as in the case of Joe Gomez and Trent Alexander-Arnold this season, so there is definitely a chance for the Colombian to make his mark at Anfield in a few years time.
It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the future of 18-year-old defender and whether he can make an impression at Anfield in the near future.
