Aberdeen coach Barry Robson is delighted to secure the ‘brilliant’ Leighton Clarkson on a permanent basis amid claims that Rangers were also eyeing the Liverpool midfielder.
The transfer window has only been open for a matter of days but have we already found one of 2023/24’s most inspired new signings?
Rangers, according to reports, had taken an interest in young Leighton Clarkson during an outstanding season on loan at Pittodrie. Celtic too.
Robson’s reaction to the news that Aberdeen had succeeded in bringing the former Liverpool starlet back above the border on a full-time basis, then, may have been part delight, part relief.
Liverpool’s Leighton Clarkson returns to Aberdeen
“There is no doubt Leighton had a positive impact during his time with us last season,” Robson tells the Dons website. “Its hugely encouraging that he has now chosen this club as his home, and the best place for his continued development.
“He is a brilliant prospect and exactly the type of player we want here at the club. He’s young, hungry, and technically very good.
“He was much admired for the creativity he brought on the pitch. And (he) showed a real affinity with the supporters during his time at Pittodrie last season.”
Aberdeen striker Luis ‘Duk’ Lopes may have been only half-joking when he wrote on Instagram that Jurgen Klopp would want to take a closer look at Clarkson on the back of his superb performances in Aberdeen red.
The former England U20 international set up nine goals and scored five himself. Including a stunning volley reminiscent of Anfield legend Steven Gerrard against Rangers themselves in December. Was this, perhaps, the moment which earned him a place on Mick Beale’s wishlist?
Any disappointment at missing out on Clarkson, however, should be offset by the arrival of Kieran Dowell at Ibrox. Jose Cifuentes is expected to finally join him in the coming weeks.
“Leighton is one of the biggest talents in our club,” Klopp said back in 2021; likening Clarkson to a young Philipp Lahm. “He’s a midfielder, a number six type, can play eight as well.
“He’s a very talented, good football-playing boy. In Germany, there’s a famous player who played similar to him. I don’t want to put pressure on the boy but he reminds me a lot of him (Lahm).
“He’s just a good footballer, a smart footballer, fast, physically strong. If you see his legs, they are not like 19-year-old boy legs, they are already grown.”
