Fabrizio Romano has given the ‘here we go’ to Liverpool’s pursuit of a much sought-after teenage prodigy from South America.
Last month, it was reported that Anfield scouts had been keeping tabs on Samuel Martinez, a playmaker for Colombian outfit Atletico Nacional who turned 17 in early April and is understood to have been eager for a move to Europe.
FIFA rules prohibit the international transfer of players under the age of 18, which means he’ll remain in his homeland for the next year, but it appears that the Reds have won the race for his signature.
In an update on his eponymous YouTube channel, Romano revealed that Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign the Colombian teenager ahead of multiple European suitors, with the Merseysiders also understood to have arranged a sell-on clause if he goes on to join another club in the future.
The Italian transfer reporter outlined: “Samuel Martinez has agreed terms with Liverpool. He will join when he turns 18 in 2027.
“Borussia Dortmund were ready to make a deal happen with a big attack. There was also another European giant club – not from England, but another country – trying to enter the race for Martinez, considered a very interesting target, but Liverpool have an agreement with the boy.
“Liverpool have an agreement with Atletico Nacional. There will be also a small percentage of future sale that Liverpool have agreed in order to accelerate talks and close the deal as soon as possible, so Samuel Martinez to Liverpool is a ‘here we go’.”
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It might not be a blockbuster signing to immediately raise the level of the Reds’ first team, but for Liverpool to fend off widespread European interest for Martinez must go down as an impressive coup by the Anfield hierarchy.
The 17-year-old has earned stylistic comparisons to former AC Milan and Brazil icon Kaka for his ‘lanky frame, upright style of running and deceptive speed in short bursts’ (The Athletic), and he starred with three assists in Colombia’s South American U-17 Championship triumph lastmonth.
The teenager has yet to make his senior debut for Atletico Nacional, but that’ll surely change between now and when he relocated to Merseyside after his 18th birthday next year.
Liverpool’s extensive scouting appears to have paid dividends, and while it might be some time before Martinez breaks into the first team at Anfield, his burgeoning reputation would suggest that a senior breakthrough with the Reds seems a matter of when rather than if.
It’ll be exciting to see what the teenager can produce in his homeland over the next few months before he comes to England. If he can make even half the impact over here that Kaka did in his playing career, this’ll go down as a massive win for the LFC recruitment and scouting team.
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