One journalist has advised to ‘keep an eye on Liverpool’ in the race for a highly coveted European midfielder this summer.
The Reds were said to be ‘seriously considering‘ a move for Kees Smit towards the end of 2025, with the 20-year-old attracting widespread attention off the back of his performances for AZ Alkmaar.
That still seems to be the case ahead of the 2026/27 season, and a prominent reporter hasn’t ruled out the possibility of an Anfield swoop for the youngster.
The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards took to X to share an update on Newcastle’s current situation regarding the midfielder, on whom Liverpool are among multiple clubs understood to be keen.
The journalist posted: ‘Newcastle have liked Kees Smit for a while but they have never been convinced he wanted to join them and have not pursued anything this summer.
‘A number of clubs are interested but Newcastle are not currently active in that conversation. Keep an eye on Liverpool but there are others keen.’
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Having impressed alongside Ryan Gravenberch in a friendly for Netherlands during the spring, is there a plausible chance that the Reds could move for the AZ midfielder in the current transfer window?
The rumoured simultaneous pursuits of Felix Nmecha, Ayyoub Bouaddi and Mateus Fernandes would indicate that Richard Hughes is determined to bolster Liverpool’s options in the middle of the park this summer, and now we can add the Dutch youngster to that list.
Journalist Bence Bocsak has described Smit (via X) as a ‘high-energy’ operator who’s ‘effective at pressing high immediately’, has a high dribble completion rate, always seeks to play the ball forward and is ‘very explosive’ with his burst of pace from a standing position.
Some of those qualities were evidenced in his performance figures from the 2025/26 season, as seen in the table below (with data from Fotmob).
Smit would appear to be a good fit for a Liverpool team now coached by Andoni Iraola, who’s renowned for succeeding at Bournemouth with a high-intensity blueprint that we can reasonably expect to see at Anfield.
As Edwards has said, the Reds could be one to watch in the race for the 20-year-old this summer.
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