A £5.1m deal between his son and Liverpool was said to be all signed and sealed, until this rant by the 19-year-old’s dad became public.
According to Goran Grujic, his son’s career will stagnate in England and the teenager should instead move to an easier league. He specifically cited Lazar Markovic as an example and went on to claim that he’d hold his son’s passport to stop a transfer!
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“I won’t allow them to destroy my boy!” Grujic senior told Serbian outlet Blic:
“Everyone turned their back on them, as they’ve spent all the money the club has had, and they see a solution in Marko’s transfer.
“That’s why there’s so much pressure on him.
“Ten times per day they are calling him by phone, urging him to sign a contract.
“There are (their) stories in Serbian media, like ‘Gerrard’s No.8 is waiting for him’, or ‘Klopp called him by phone’, ‘millions here, millions there’.
“And there’s also pressure in (the) Red Star dressing room, as it seems that (people from the management) convinced players, who are waiting for their salaries, that their payments depend on Marko’s transfer.
“I mean, which club is willing to pay £5.1m, and then to say ‘Look, kid, come when you want’?
“Nope, if Liverpool FC is seriously counting on him, they’ll tell him ‘Start of training camp in January on this day, at that hour, we’re expecting you’. And, what kind of combination is that?
“The club is paying for him £5.1m, but then leave him on loan and that loan costs £730,000?
“Really, I’m starting to think I should call the police to tell them everything about this pressure.”
“His passport is with me, and I pronounce that Marko is not going anywhere.
“None of our younger (Serbian) players survived in the Premier League,” he added.
“Bojan Djordjic, Milos Veljkovic, Adem Ljajic, Zoran Tosic, Lazar Markovic, Danilo Pantic… Do you need me to continue to list them? None of them had the opportunity to prove themselves.
“The second is the story with (Branislav) Ivanovic and (Nemanja) Vidic. They came as experienced players.
“I know he has the quality to be able to play in England , but it’s not league for him now.”
After these comments were published though, Goran Grujic was involved in a car crash (he’s ok), and reports indicate that the Liverpool move is still very much on despite the protestations. Grujic posted a picture to prove he IS in possession of his passport, not his father. The midfielder will be loaned back to Red Star Belgrade (the party Grujic’s dad is most angry at) for the rest of the season, before officially joining us in the summer.
It’s disappointing in all honesty, as the quotes cloud what seemed an exciting transfer move for Liverpool.
Still, his father has a point. Young Serbs have all flopped in the Premier League, but flourished in different European leagues. At £5m though, it’s a risk worth taking – on our behalf at least…