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It has been a turbulent couple of years for Stefan Bajcetic, a player who once looked destined to become a cornerstone of Liverpool’s midfield for the next decade.
The Spaniard burst onto the scene under Jurgen Klopp in the 2022/23 season, making 22 appearances for the club and scoring against Aston Villa on Boxing Day to announce himself as one of the most exciting young talents in European football. The future appeared bright until injuries began to derail his progress entirely.
By the time Arne Slot arrived at Anfield in the summer of 2024, the Spaniard had fallen outside of first-team plans, and Liverpool sent him out on a season-long loan to Red Bull Salzburg in Austria – a move sweetened by the presence of former Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders in the dugout.
He made 19 appearances for Salzburg, including six in the Champions League, but the spell quickly unravelled when Lijnders was sacked in December following a string of poor results.
With his primary reason for choosing Salzburg now gone, he completed a loan switch to La Liga side Las Palmas in January 2025. He was a regular starter in the second half of the campaign, registering his first goal for the club in a defeat to Mallorca in February. However, Las Palmas were relegated from La Liga, and the season ended on a sour note when Bajcetic required hamstring surgery.
Now James Pearce of the Athletic has reported that for both Stefan Bajcetic and Jayden Danns are working towards being fit for pre-season, with Bajcetic suffering a setback in his recovery from a hamstring surgery this season:
“The priority for Bajcetic and Danns is ensuring they are fit for pre-season training in July. Then it’s down to them to try to force their way into contention.”
“Having missed so much football due to injuries, I’d say the most likely outcome is that they are both loaned out in 2026-27, but nothing is set in stone.”
“It’s been two years since Bajcetic last featured for Liverpool. After spells on loan at Red Bull Salzburg and Las Palmas last season, he needed hamstring surgery. He was due back for the second half of this season but suffered a setback in his recovery and is still doing rehab.”
Bajcetic in particular will be acutely aware that time is not on his side — at 21, he needs a sustained run of football to remind Liverpool’s coaching staff of what he is capable of. The club have always spoken highly of him, but sentiment only goes so far with Arne Slot.