Slovakian top-flight side MFK Zemplin Michalovce have officially completed the permanent signing of a Liverpool midfielder
Liverpool continue their preparations for the 2026-27 season when they face Wrexham in New York on Wednesday night.
The friendly at Yankee Stadium is the second stop on the Reds’ three-match pre-season tour of the United States following their opening victory over Sunderland, with Leeds United still to come before the squad returns to Merseyside.
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The match gives head coach Andoni Iraola another opportunity to assess his squad as players continue building fitness ahead of the new campaign.
While attention is on events in New York, Liverpool have also continued reshaping the club’s playing squad away from the first-team tour. The Reds confirmed another departure on Wednesday as an academy graduate completed a permanent move overseas.
Liverpool announced that midfielder Tommy Pilling has completed a permanent transfer to Slovakian top-flight side MFK Zemplin Michalovce, subject to international clearance. The 21-year-old leaves Anfield after spending 16 years with the club, having joined the academy at the age of five.
Pilling progressed through Liverpool’s academy system and represented the club at youth level before moving into the under-21 setup. Although he remained highly regarded within the academy, opportunities in the senior team proved limited as he now begins the next stage of his career in Slovakia.
He trained with former manager Arne Slot’s first-team squad and was named on the bench for the League Cup tie against Southampton last September, but senior opportunities never materialised.
His move brings an end to a long association with Liverpool, where he developed through every age group after arriving as a young child. The transfer also offers the midfielder the chance to pursue regular first-team football in the Slovak First Football League.
Founded in 1912, MFK Zemplín Michalovce play their home games at the 4,440-capacity Mestský futbalový Stadion and have competed in Slovakia’s topflight, the Niké Liga, since winning promotion in 2015.
The midfielder made his senior pre-season bow for Liverpool during the summer of 2025 but did not travel with the squad for this year’s tour of the United States. With his contract entering its final stages, a permanent transfer offered both player and club a clear path forward.
Liverpool have continued to oversee movement across the academy this summer as young players seek opportunities to establish themselves in senior football.
Permanent transfers and loan moves remain an important part of that process, allowing graduates to continue their development at clubs where regular competitive football is available.
MFK Zemplin Michalovce
Tommy Pilling