Liverpool boss Slot hails ‘impressive’ Leoni | OneFootball

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has praised new signing Giovanni Leoni, revealing that he has been impressed by the young Italian in just three training sessions.

Leoni joined the Premier League champions last week, for a reported fee of €35 million plus add-ons. Despite only making his Serie A debut last season, the 18-year-old shot to prominence within the Parma team and has been quickly dubbed as one of the best young Italian players of his generation.

Speaking to the media ahead of Liverpool’s trip to Newcastle United on Monday, with quotes via Liverpool’s official website, Slot described Leoni as “a good-looking guy, as with most Italians! He has trained with us three times now I think.”

Liverpool coach Arne Slot (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Slot: New Liverpool signing Leoni impressive for his age

Slot continued, “If you look at his transfer fee, you can expect that he is already quite grown up for his age – and that is exactly what I saw. He comes in as an 18-year-old just playing with his new teammates as if he is here for longer. Impressive; if you look at how tall he is, fast and comfortable on the ball.”

Slot defended Liverpool’s transfer fee for the young centre-back, “Yeah, there is a reason why we paid the transfer fee we did, because we see him as a bright prospect. Is that good English? And he has already had three good sessions.”

“It also tells you something about the team. If you come to this club, if you come into this team, you feel at ease from the start because it’s a very good and nice group to start your Liverpool career in.”

Giovanni Leoni signs his Liverpool contract (liverpoolfc.com)

Last season, Leoni played 17 times for Parma in Serie A and quickly accelerated through the Italian U17 and U19 national teams as a reward for his strong domestic performances.