Exclusive: Man City and Arsenal scout 12-assist 'machine', star confirms Liverpool are watching him too
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Liverpool are not the only club pursuing Daniel Svensson with Premier League rivals Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa all watching the Nordsjaelland left-back.
- Exclusive from Graeme Bailey
With his name doing the rounds in the gossip columns over in Scandinavia, Sweden Under 21 international Daniel Svensson cleared up some of the uncertainty surrounding those Anfield links this week.
And, indeed, Nordsjaelland ace Svensson confirms that Liverpool are scouting him after all.
Arne Slot’s Premier League pacesetters appear to be in the market for a left-back to potentially replace Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas in the long-term. And Svensson has emerged as a candidate.
"[The Liverpool interest is] great fun, of course. It's a sign that I'm doing something right and performing well," Svensson excitedly tells Fotboll Skanalen. "I just use it as fuel to run on.
"It was obviously a bit surreal. I don't know much about it. I only know that [Liverpool] watched some matches and such. More than that, I don't know."
Arsenal and Manchester City join Liverpool in watching Daniel Svensson
TBR can now provide some more context around a 22-year-old left-back who, priding himself on his flexibility, can also play at centre-half, on the right or in defensive midfield.
In addition to Liverpool, Svensson was on Aston Villa’s radar over the summer.
Whether he still is remains to be seen. Aston Villa beat Borussia Dortmund to Ian Maatsen in a £38 million deal from Chelsea, and the likelihood is that Lucas Digne would have to depart in order to make room for Svensson.
TBR have been told that Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City have watched Svensson this season, while there is also interest from a Brentford side who have build their foundations upon Scandinavian success under their Danish head coach Thomas Frank.
Brighton and Hove Albion looked closely at Svensson too before completing a £25 million deal for Fenerbahce flyer Ferdi Kadioglu in August.
The Stockholm-born Svensson is now in his fifth season with Nordsjaelland. And, while his contract does not expire until 2027, a player who ended last season with four goals and 12 assists feels he is rapidly approaching the time where a fresh start in a bigger league would be welcome.
Sweden Under 21 star Svensson opens door to the Premier League
"The idea is that I will move on relatively soon," Svensson adds, albeit insisting that a summer departure is more likely than a winter one.
"It is absolutely not impossible [that I leave in January]. But it might happen that I play the whole season and then move on. The club has said that they want to keep certain players for the rest of the season and I seem to be one of those players.
“It is likely that I will stay for the rest of the season.
"The most important thing is that I get playing time," Svensson adds. "It is still a step where I want to take to continue developing. I do that by playing. The most important thing is that I come to a club that has a good plan for me.
"Which league it is, it doesn't really matter. I am absolutely ready.”
Svensson is not the only Nordsjaelland youngster with Premier League admirers.
Sindre Walle Egeli, likened to Arjen Robben due to his penchant for cutting in and firing off shots, is on the radar of Newcastle United, West Ham, Crystal Palace and more, HITC reported recently.
Svensson, meanwhile, appears to possess not only the tactical flexibility but also the physical and athletic talents required to thrive in English football.
“It is quite unique to be able to do so many things as a footballer,” Nordsjaelland team-mate Jeppe Tverskov tells Tipsbladet. “And, luckily for him, he is extremely good at all those things.
“Sometimes, you see that if you can do a bit of everything, you end up being a reserve. But [Svensson] doesn’t because he is so good.
“He is a machine. He has a strong body and can run a lot. During the time when we played almost every three days, there were many who played many minutes. The only difference was that, in every eternal fight, he had 13 kilometers in him. It is very impressive.”
