The 18-year-old centre-back was one of the revelations of the 2024-25 Serie A season and is now on the verge of joining LiverpoolThere is arguably no better place to study the art of defending than Italy, and Giovanni Leoni is already looking like the country’s next great centre-back. However, the 18-year-old would be the first to admit that he’s also been shaped by English football.Leoni grew up watching the Premier League on television and, according to his childhood friends, knew the name of every single player in every single team by heart. There was one name, though, that meant more to Leoni than any other: Virgil van Dijk. He idolised the Dutchman – and still does, which is good news for Liverpool, with the Reds having agreed a deal worth €35 million (£30m/$41m) to sign one of the most promising young players Italy has produced in years…Recommended external contentVideoWe need your consent to show you content our Editorial team embedded from Video. You can toggle this (and all other embeds from Video across goal.com) on with one click only and deactivate as well.Always display Video contentI confirm that I would like to see external content. Personal identifiable data could be transferred to Third parties. Read more about it in our privacy policy.
