Question marks surround Liverpool‘s recruitment across the last 12 months or so, yet one deal that no one can argue with is the signing of Jeremy Jacquet.
Having struck a deal to pluck the Frenchman from Rennes back in January, the £60m man belatedly arrived on Merseyside this summer following an injury-hit end to 2025/26.
With all eyes on the protracted Bradley Barcola saga, Jacquet’s addition flew under the radar in a sense, few having perhaps actually seen the defender in action back in France.
Now, just months on, it is the younger Frenchman who is already earning rave reviews following a stunning few weeks for club and country.
Why Liverpool have “hit the jackpot” on Jacquet
Injury may well derail his early-season momentum, having suffered a hamstring strain while featuring for Les Bleus, yet that shouldn’t mask Jacquet’s rapid rise since moving to Anfield.
On the international front, the 21-year-old notably starred against both Belgium and Italy, completing 100% of his passes against the latter as Zinedine Zidane’s men secured a point while down to ten men.
The great Zidane, newly installed as France boss, was quick to praise the youngster late last week, repeating himself when hailing Jacquet as “very good”.
|
Jacquet – 26/27 Stats |
|
|---|---|
|
Stat (*per game) |
Record |
|
Games |
5 |
|
Goals & Assists |
0 |
|
Pass accuracy* |
90% |
|
Key passes* |
0.6 |
|
Total duels won* |
5.8 |
|
Aerial duels won* |
2.0 |
|
Tackles* |
2.2 |
|
Interceptions* |
1.6 |
|
Dribbled past* |
0.2 |
|
Recoveries* |
4.2 |
He’s certainly given the Real Madrid legend something to think about moving forward, in the absence of Williams Saliba, with Jacquet having picked up where he left off at club level under Andoni Iraola.
A starter in all five Premier League games thus far, he’s helped the Reds to secure three clean sheets, arguably only behind Cody Gakpo in the debate regarding the club’s player of the season so far.
In the view of talent scout Jacek Kulig, Liverpool have “hit the jackpot” with his signing, a viewpoint that, as TEAMtalk reported last month, FSG themselves appear to agree with.
There is a feeling that the £60m fee dished out could prove a bargain before long, with the Merseysiders stumbling upon the perfect partner to and successor for Virgil van Dijk in the centre of defence.
It is early days, of course, but Jacquet’s immediate impact could well have consequences for Liverpool’s defensive planning.
Why “Virgil 2.0” might now see Liverpool hopes dashed
It’s remarkable how quickly things can change, with those of a Liverpool persuasion having been rueing the failure to sign Marc Guehi a year ago, following a last-gasp collapse on deadline day.
After a season of suffering at the back, with Ibrahima Konate so often at the scene of the crime, Jacquet has helped to steady the ship so swiftly.
He looks set to be a mainstay of this backline for years to come, the kind of player Arne Slot was no doubt crying out for across 2025/26.
That fact might well ensure that talk of a return of Jarell Quansah quietens down now, the Englishman having been tipped to return ever since leaving for Bayer Leverkusen last summer.
The Reds do hold a buyback clause as part of that exit, believed to be in the region of £59.5m, having originally sold him for closer to £35m.
As reported by Football Insider this week, while the Merseysiders continue to track his progress, there aren’t currently any plans to bring Quansah back into the Anfield fold.
There does appear little need for a return considering Jacquet has now nailed down that centre-back berth instead, with Quansah’s chance having perhaps come and gone in a Liverpool shirt.
Of course, eyebrows were raised when he was allowed to depart a year ago, not at least at a time when the club’s centre-back ranks were rather depleted, with the 23-year-old a player whom Jurgen Klopp had previously described as being like “Virgil van Dijk 2.0”.
And yet, his withdrawal at half-time during Slot’s first Premier League games in charge in August 2024 set the tone for what was to follow, with Quansah fading from view across that title-winning year.
He has recovered well to force his way into Thomas Tuchel’s England plans since leaving for Germany, although he has largely lined up at right-back for his country to date, memorably seeing red against Mexico at the World Cup.
With Liverpool boasting Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni, alongside another potential Van Dijk successor in the form of Ifeanyi Ndukwe, the need to bring Quansah back to Anfield does feel far less pressing now.
Indeed, if Jacquet maintains his recent form over an extended period, the talk of triggering that buyback clause will be swiftly forgotten.
