While Arne Slot and his entourage have been gunning for silverware in their maiden campaign at Liverpool, they are keeping an eye on a number of loanees – including Spanish midfielder Stefan Bajcetic, who is spending time at UD Las Palmas.
Before temporarily moving onto pastures new elsewhere, the defensive midfielder notched the solitary goal – and a haul of five yellow cards – in 22 appearances for the Reds. He then joined Austrian top flight side RB Salzburg in the summer of 2024.
It didn’t go to plan – and he lasted just six months. Upon his return to Merseyside, he was shipped off to Spain and has now accrued seven appearances for the club. And exactly what Liverpool fans will be wondering amid his absence is: how’s he getting on?
Bajcetic’s Las Palmas Displays Compared to Spanish Icon
The Spaniard instantly became a Las Palmas ‘fan favourite’
stefan bajcetic las palmas
Since jumping ship – from England to Spain – just two months ago, the 20-year-old scored his first goal of the season in a 3-1 loss to RDC Mallorca and has been used in every single league outing for Diego Martinez’s struggling side since joining on a loan basis.
In 2024/25, the Liverpool academy graduate has played against the likes of Girona, Villarreal, Barcelona, Real Valladolid, Real Betis and Alaves as he looks to re-earn the interest of 46-year-old Slot, who is widely regarded as one of the best managers in world football.
Compared to the legendary Sergio Busquets, who is widely considered as one of the greatest defensive midfielders in football history, Bajcetic has notched 455 minutes of action in Las Palmas’ engine room and, sometimes, in the heart of defence when push comes to shove.
According to a report from the Daily Mail, he’s ever-so quickly become a fan favourite among the club’s loyal fanbase – and even further, the youngster has been hailed as being a ‘pure talent’ and having an ‘exceptional attitude’ as they’re embroiled in a relegation dogfight.
From a statistics perspective (see in full below), he's completed six key passes from a deep midfield role – and, in terms of his general passing, he has accrued an accuracy rate of 73.1%. Defensively, he has thrown up 4.43 duels won, 3.57 ball recoveries and 1.14 interceptions per game.
Bajcetic
Slot's Thoughts on Bajcetic's Loan Spell
'I think he could become a very important player for us'
Whether he has a chance of returning to Slot’s engine room, what with Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister forming a somewhat formidable partnership in the Liverpool engine room and, thus, performing out of their skin on a week-by-week basis, remains to be seen.
In August, Liverpool boss Slot wished him the best on his loan travels. "I hope it will be a big year for him because he’s a very talented player and I think he could become a very important player for us, but only if he gets playing time now."
It’s a smart decision, at least in our opinion, to let him go somewhere, where he will hopefully play a lot of games. Then for next season, we’ll have a player. If he fulfills his potential, he could definitely, definitely play for us in the future.
All statistics per Sofascore - correct as of 20/03/2025