Milos Kerkez to suffer immediate Liverpool blow as £40m star 'flies back to UK'

Milos Kerkez will not have everything his own way at Liverpool despite being close to joining the Reds from Bournemouth. The defender is widely expected to complete a move to Anfield in exchange for a transfer fee of around £40million. Liverpool have moved quickly to land Kerkez amid uncertainty over the futures of Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas.

Kerkez is expected to sign a five-year contract and will be a long-term solution for Liverpool on the left side of defence. He turned plenty of heads with his stellar displays for Bournemouth last season, playing in every single Premier League game. The 21-year-old will be expected to carry his form over to his new club, who will head into the 2025/26 campaign as the team to beat.

The move is set to be completed over the coming days, with The Athletic reporting that Kerkez will undergo a medical on Monday. He is flying back to the UK to thrash out the formalities of the deal, with official confirmation likely to arrive on Tuesday.

Kerkez will be delighted when the move is signed and sealed, but the Hungary international is set for an immediate blow upon his arrival. He will need to pick a new shirt number, given that all of his most likely options are already taken.

The No 3 he wore at Bournemouth is occupied by Wataru Endo, while the No 11 he wears for his country is taken by Mohamed Salah. Kerkez also wore No 5 during his time at AZ Alkmaar, but that number is currently used by Ibrahima Konate.

There is little chance of Liverpool shuffling their squad numbers around to give Kerkez one of his preferred choices, meaning he will have to decide on a new one unless somebody leaves.

It remains to be seen how Kerkez will fare at Anfield, given that he will face stiff competition to nail down a starting spot. Robertson has been the standout choice over the last few years and will be eager to avoid slipping down the pecking order.

While the arrival of Kerkez might signal a changing of the guard, Robertson is not worried about the possibility of losing his place in the team.

Speaking while on international duty earlier this month, he said: "We're not daft, it looks as if a deal could potentially be done, but until that is done, I've not even given that a second thought. I back myself.

"I've got confidence in my own ability and that drives me forward. I've had eight fantastic years at Liverpool in terms of winning trophies, being a mainstay in the team, which I'm incredibly proud of.

"I'm not getting any younger, I can't change my age, but I still believe I've got a lot to give and that's what I focus on. You can't focus on other people or who you're competing with."