Ragnar Klavan has completed his move to Liverpool, and Estonia manager Magnus Pehrsson has backed the 30-year-old to be a huge success at Anfield, as reported by ESPN.
The Swedish coach was full of praise for the Estonian centre-back, who completed his £4.2m move to Liverpool to become Jurgen Klopp’s fifth signing of the window so far.
Pehrsson claims Klavan is not only perfectly suited to the English game, but also brings a number of fantastic qualities to any team. The former Augsburg defender has been touted as a fantastic leader and a “complete defender” by Pehrsson, and hopefully his words ring true.
“I think he has most of what you ask from a central defender – he is calm with the ball, he can build up well, he’s fast, he’s good in the air, he can tackle,
“I think he’s a complete defender.”
The coach insists he’s not a vocal leader who screams at his teammates and points them in the right direction, but claims he leads by example and shows everyone the right way to do things. It’s important to have both types of player in the team, and hopefully the younger lads can learn a thing or two from the more experienced Klavan.
“I’d say that he’s not really a vocal leader. He’s a leader in Estonia because he’s a great role model in how he trains, how he plays, how he takes care of himself,” he continued.
“He’s more a leader by action than by words, I’d say.
“With the national team, he is sharp and focused when we are training. He is doing his work.
“He is always very concerned how to deliver what’s asked from him in his position. You always get what you want.”
Many may be a little underwhelmed by the signing of this relatively unknown player from the Bundesliga, but Jurgen Klopp is clearly a fan and we should trust his judgement and trust in his experience of the German leagues.
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Klavan is likely to be playing backup to our first choice centre-backs this season, and as backups go he looks like he could be an excellent option. He’s also a relatively low-risk signing, and could prove to be a superb bit of business if his coach is correct about him.