Stefan Bajcetic arrived at Liverpool in February 2021 as a teenager from Celta Vigo, joining the Reds’ academy on a modest fee. Signed from Celta Vigo, he moved to Liverpool in December 2020 for £224,000.
His rise through the youth ranks was rapid.
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He debuted for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp as a second-half substitute during the 9-0 Anfield win over AFC Bournemouth in August 2022, aged 17, before scoring his first goal in a 3-1 Premier League win away at Aston Villa that December, and going on to feature 19 times that season.
That breakthrough campaign proved to be the high point of his time at Anfield.
Injury issues limited him to only three appearances the following season, and he later spent 2024-25 on loan at Red Bull Salzburg and Las Palmas, making 33 appearances across the two clubs, though he did not feature at all during 2025-26.
This summer, after five and a half years on Merseyside, Bajcetic completed a permanent return to the club where he started out.
Celta Vigo, the city of his birth, agreed a base fee of €1.5 million plus add-ons for the midfielder, with Liverpool retaining a buy-back option as part of the deal.
Following the move, Bajcetic turned to Instagram to say goodbye to the club and its supporters.
He opened his message by explaining that leaving was never part of his plan.
“I never planned to write a goodbye message, because I was where I always wanted to be,” he wrote, before thanking fans for standing by him through difficult periods.
“The love you have given me throughout the 5 years I spent in Liverpool has been incredible, it’s easy to show love when things go in the right direction, but as you know it hasn’t always been the case with me, and you have been there for me at all times.”
Bajcetic acknowledged the toll his injuries took on his career, and the reasoning behind his decision to leave.
“I fought all the injuries and adversities with the motivation of paying back the love and trust you showed me over this period, but unfortunately I couldn’t,” he said.
“In life sometimes you need a change and thinking of myself and my family, I think it’s time.”
He reflected on how much he had changed since joining as a 16-year-old, crediting the city and a local family who hosted him during his early years at the club.
“The memories I’ve had with this club will stay with me forever and I’m glad I will be able to tell my kids I played in the best club in England,” he wrote.
“I lived with a scouse family that showed me how special this city and people are, and I can proudly say I will always have a little bit of that in me.”
Stefan Bajcetic went on to thank teammates from every age group he played in, from the under-16s through to the first team, as well as the coaching staff who worked with him.
He also singled out the club’s non-playing staff, including chefs, kit staff, groundskeepers and player care teams, along with the medical department that treated him through his repeated injury setbacks.
He closed the message with a promise that his connection to the club would not end with his departure.
“This club will stay in my heart forever,” he wrote. “Once a red, forever a red.”
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