La Liga side Levante are winning the race to loan Ifeanyi Ndukwe from Liverpool this coming season
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - AUGUST 9: Ifeanyi Ndukwe of Liverpool during the during the pre-season friendly match between Liverpool FC and AS Monaco at Anfield on August 9, 2026 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
Ifeanyi Ndukwe is expected to head out on loan following Liverpool's final pre-season games(Image: Getty Images)
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La Liga side Levante are leading the chase to take Liverpool defender Ifeanyi Ndukwe on loan for the new season.
The Reds have been inundated with interest in Ndukwe, following an impressive pre-season showing under Andoni Iraola.
Ndukwe signed from Austria Vienna at the start of July in a £2.6m deal that was arranged in January after he caught the eye of Liverpool scouts at the Under-17 World Cup in Qatar.
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The teenager couldn't move to England until after his 18th birthday in March but an excellent summer period under Iraola has led to increased interest.
Liverpool have fielded offers from clubs all over Europe but it is Levante who are understood to be at the front of the queue as things stand.
Clubs from Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium and Denmark have all expressed an interest in Nudkwe and Liverpool have looked to take a studious approach to deciding his next move.
Game time has been the most prominent consideration, given that the Austrian centre-back needs to earn more points for a UK work permit.
And La Liga outfit Levante have put forward the most enticing proposal for both Liverpool and Ndukwe ahead of a potential move being confirmed before the end of the month.
Levante begin their domestic campaign away to Osasuna on Monday, August 24 but it's understood no deal is yet complete for Ndukwe as things stand.
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Liverpool needed to receive a Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) from the FA in order to help them obtain Ndukwe a work visa from the Home Office but the centre-back doesn't yet qualify, with footballers needing 15 points across several categories.
The towering centre-half is uncapped by Austria made only one senior appearance last season, meaning he has yet to accrue the required points to meet the senior international criteria.
The club's Elite Significant Contribution (ESC) slot has already been taken up by 18-year-old centre-back Mor Talla Ndiaye, who made the first-team bench towards the end of last season.
"Right now we need to decide, in collaboration with Liverpool, where Ifeanyi will fit best," Ndukwe's agent, Georg Lederer, said last week.
"We are looking at several different parameters. First and foremost, it is about Ifeanyi getting a lot of playing time, and then Liverpool are also looking at what type of football clubs play, as they want him in a high-pressing defence, so it is a bit like what you see in Liverpool.
"Since Ifeanyi has just arrived at Liverpool, it is of course a loan agreement without an option to buy, but for now I can't say much more."
A move to a league as valued as La Liga could lead to Ndukwe accruing the required points to facilitate a January return to his parent club for the second half of the Premier League campaign.
However, with Ronald Araujo now part of the squad on a season-long loan from Barcelona, Jeremy Jacquet fit once more and Giovanni Leoni and Joe Gomez expected to be ready for respective returns in the coming weeks, Liverpool may feel a year away from Anfield playing senior football may be better suited for Ndukwe's development.
Speaking about his younger colleague after the 3-2 loss to Monaco at Anfield last week, captain Virgil van Dijk said: "Obviously I saw the games in pre-season in America.
"He's a big talent, big guy and he wants to learn and I had a brief conversation with him, especially in the last couple of days.
"For him it is just progressing. I know he has to go on loan I think so let’s see where he ends up. Yeah [it's a shame he has to move on loan].
"I don’t know exactly what the rules are but the matter of fact is that he has to go on loan and wherever he goes, he needs to learn, get better and be ready when he comes back to hopefully stay there."