Latest news with #Pecsi
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
EXCLUSIVE: Wonderkid will join Liverpool first team in pre-season
20-year-old Armin Pecsi will be arriving from Puskas Akademia this summer and linking up with fellow Hungarian Dominik Szoboszlai in the first team. He's probably one of the club's most exciting young talents, and the only nominee Liverpool currently have in the top 100 rankings for the Golden Boy award. Advertisement It's expected that the Reds' new wonderkid will initially be playing for the club's U21 side as he adjusts to the demands of English football. However, Anfield Watch understands that for the beginning of the pre-season, Pecsi will be joining the first team and he will be part of Slot's preparations. This means he could get a chance to make his unofficial debut for the club, if the need arises to use more than two goalkeepers with Alisson Becker and Giorgi Mamardashvili currently ahead of him in the pecking order. In pre-season, Liverpool often rotate goalkeepers, so this is a possibility. Advertisement Last summer, Slot used three goalkeepers during the preparations with third choice Vitezslav Jaros playing three games during pre-season, including 28 minutes against Sevilla, when Alisson Becker and Caoimhin Kelleher were both available. It's expected Jaros is going to depart on loan with Ajax currently the frontrunners to sign him. This will open up a space for Pecsi to claim the number three spot and thus potentially make his debut for the Reds' first team. The club have high hopes for Pecsi and regard him as Slot's third choice keeper. While, he will be playing mostly U21 football next season, which is a step down for somebody who has over 50 first team appearances under his belt, the expectations is that he will be training alongside Mamardashvili and Alisson, to learn the ropes and this is very much a step up. Advertisement As a third choice goalkeeper, he could even get a chance to make his debut for the Reds' first team in a rare circumstance if both Alisson and Mamardashvili are injured. This occurred last season, too, with Jaros playing against Crystal Palace in the Premier League and Brighton in the League Cup. In the long-term, Liverpool envision Pecsi to be a first choice goalkeeper. That is why they have invested £1.5m on him, which makes him the second most expensive Hungarian goalkeeper behind Peter Gulacsi.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Wonderkid fulfils DESTINY by signing for Liverpool
Liverpool's latest signing Armin Pecsi is another example of this. It was the Hungarian wonderkid's destiny to play for the club. Pecsi's father, Imre, is a Liverpool fan. His son, Armin, was born in 2005 - the same year the Reds pulled off the miracle of Istanbul. Advertisement Growing up in Gyor, Armin, just like his father, became a fan of the Reds. Thousands of miles away from Liverpool, the youngster was wearing the club's colours with pride as he shared on his Instagram page announcing his arrival at the club. Three years ago, Pecsi was already walking around the Anfield dressing room. Back then, he made the visit while he was playing in U19 European qualifying matches in the north of England. Incidentally, it's here where he first caught the eye of scouts, playing a blinder against England's U19 team, making six saves and keeping a 10-men Hungary in the game, with his side narrowly losing 1-0. In between those qualifying matches, Hungary's team made a visit to Anfield, and had a tour around the stadium. Pecsi standing at the back with his long hair, will have already fulfilled a lifelong dream of visiting the famous stadium. Little did he know that three years later, he'd be there again, signing for the club. But before that, a few more significant things had to happen to forge Pecsi's arrival into destiny. Advertisement In 2023, Dominik Szoboszlai signed for Liverpool. Hungary's best player, Pecsi's countryman, signing for his beloved club. To make matters even better, by that point Pecsi was Szoboszlai's fellow colleague, with Matyas Esterhazy's EM Sports Consulting representing both of Hungary's promising stars. As a result, Pecsi had the opportunity to watch Szoboszlai in action during Hungary's winter break in the 2023/24 season. As shared on his Instagram, he attended a game back in December 2023. Even then, he couldn't have fathomed that he'd be signing for Liverpool and he'd soon get the opportunity to play at Anfield as player of the Reds. But that's now the prospect that awaits him.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Liverpool employ new rule to secure RECORD transfer
Liverpool to use ESC ruling Pecsi doesn't have enough football under his belt to qualify for a work-permit with a Premier League side. The goalkeeper falls a fair way short, in fact. The only way Liverpool can make this happen, then, is by using a rule introduced in 2023 for 'Elite Significant Contribution' players. It's a rule that was brought in to help clubs secure elite talent with high potential. Advertisement Pecsi is certainly that but Liverpool must register him in some way. That could be with the senior side as a third-choice goalkeeper or with the Under 21s. But Liverpool haven't used this ruling before. It's a sign of just how highly they rate Pecsi - the Reds are willing to argue that he's got truly elite potential in order to have him qualify.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Liverpool confirm second summer transfer as highly-rated Hungary star joins Reds
Liverpool have signed 20-year-old goalkeeper Armin Pecsi, who could soon be joined by another Hungarian as the Reds get close to landing Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth Liverpool have signed goalkeeper Armin Pecsi from Hungarian side Puskas Akademia. The 20-year-old has joined the Reds for £1.5million after completing a medical and signing his contract on Saturday. Pecsi is expected to join Liverpool 's under-21s, although he will get the chance to train with first-team goalkeeper Alisson Becker and new signing Giorgi Mamardashvili. He joins the club after Caoimhin Kelleher left Liverpool to become Brentford's first-choice keeper for £18m. Although young, Pecsi has plenty of experience, having made 52 appearances in all competitions for Puskas Akademia, keeping 15 clean sheets. He made 30 appearances across the 2024/25 season, helping the club finish second in the Hungarian top flight. He has also clocked up five appearances for the Hungary under-21 side and was nominated for the prestigious 2025 Golden Boy award. The youngster is the second Hungarian in the Liverpool squad, alongside Dominik Szoboszlai, although that number could become three, with the club pushing to sign Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez. Kerkez has left the Hungary camp ahead of a match against Azerbaijan due to 'private reasons'. Those are understood to be connected to a pending move from Bournemouth to Liverpool, with all parties wanting to avoid any injuries in the closing stages of negotiations. Pecsi is the second signing of the summer transfer window, following Jeremie Frimpong in joining the club. Frimpong has signed a five-year deal with Liverpool after the club paid Bayer Leverkusen £29.5m for his services in the wake of Trent Alexander-Arnold leaving for Real Madrid. Mamardashvili, meanwhile, was officially signed last summer, but was immediately loaned back to Valencia for the 2024/25 campaign. He will now join up with Arne Slot 's squad, effectively taking Kelleher's place as the second-choice keeper behind Alisson. HAVE YOUR SAY! Who will be the most important summer signing for Liverpool? Comment below. Liverpool also remain in talks with Leverkusen over a potential British-record deal for Florian Wirtz, having offered £113m for the playmaker. That bid, made up of £100m upfront with around £13m in bonuses, is still short of Leverkusen's asking price of £126.4m (€150m). Meanwhile, Liverpool have released seven players. Dominic Corness, Louis Enahoro-Marcus, Harry Evers, Lee Jonas, Jakub Ojrzynski, Jacob Poytress and Reece Trueman, none of whom had played for the first team, have all departed the new Premier League champions and will search for new clubs. Further departures are expected, with Darwin Nunez, Harvey Elliott, Andy Robertson and Federico Chiesa among those who could leave. Chiesa only joined Liverpool last summer from Juventus for £10m, but he has struggled for game time under Slot and wants to leave. He told Corriere dello Sport: "At the beginning I felt the frustration of the radical change and of being far behind the group, then there was the injury. Could I start to discuss the choices of Slot who has always been very respectful towards me, as well as the club? The desire to play was there, I put it aside, I understood the situation."
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Liverpool transfer target 'says yes' to Reds in record-breaking deal
Liverpool is close to signing a new goalkeeper following the departure of Caoimhin Kelleher — although he will not assume the role of the Reds' back-up goalkeeper next season. That spot will still go to Giorgi Mamardashvili, who is set to move to Anfield a year on from agreeing to join the Reds, and no doubt has Alisson's No.1 jersey in his sights. Advertisement The Reds do, though, appear to be planning for the future, as they move towards an agreement to sign 20-year-old goalkeeper Armin Pecsi from Hungarian club Puskas Akademia. The youngster is said to be viewed as Hungary's next big goalkeeper prospect after Peter Gulacsi, who coincidentally also joined Liverpool earlier on in his career. understands Pecsi has said yes to a deal to join the Reds, agreeing terms on what is set to be a club-record deal for his current club. The fee is understood to be up to around $2.0 million (£1.5 million). READ MORE: Liverpool set to miss out on transfer target as AC Milan plots move READ MORE: Michael Owen admits Premier League rival had him 'fearing for his career' Advertisement It's also understood Pecsi will initially play for the Reds' U21s side, who are now searching for a new head coach after Barry Lewtas stepped down. Pecsi, 20, first began training with Puskas' senior team as a 16-year-old and is now the team's first-choice goalkeeper, and he helped the club to a second-placed finish in the Hungarian top flight in 2024-25. Last month, Pesci was named among the nominees for the Golden Boy award, which is given to the best Under-21 player in world football. Meanwhile, Kelleher said that it was an easy decision to leave Liverpool upon completing his transfer to fellow Premier League side Brentford. Reflecting on his exit from Anfield and his arrival at his new club, Kelleher said: 'I'm buzzing, I'm really happy to be here. 'I don't think it was very difficult for me to leave [Liverpool]. I felt for my own career that the time was right for me to go, to be a no.1 and to play every week. Caoimhin Kelleher left Liverpool to join Brentford -Credit:GETTY 'I heard of some interest a number of weeks ago. Once I knew Brentford was in for me, it was definitely one I was really excited about and wanted to do as quickly as possible. Advertisement 'When I come back for pre-season, all focus will be on what I want to do next year; to work on certain goals and what I need to improve on, and to have a really good season for Brentford." Liverpool's new No.2 goalkeeper, Mamardashvili, confirmed last month that he will move to Anfield at the end of the season after there were some suggestions that he might spend another season at Valencia. "I'll go to Liverpool and give my all, just like I did at Valencia," Mamardashvili said. "I'll work hard every single day, training with Alisson will help me."
