LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Liverpool quickly secured a replacement for the departing Trent Alexander-Arnold by signing Netherlands right back Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen on Friday.
Frimpong returns to England on a five-year contract after Liverpool triggered a release clause reported to be between 35 to 40 million euros ($39.7 million to $45.4 million) to sign the player.
He developed in the Manchester City academy, which he joined at age 9, and went to Celtic in 2019 without ever playing in the Premier League.
“It went quite easy. Liverpool came and said they had interest, and obviously for me it was a no-brainer," Frimpong said in a Liverpool statement.
Frimpong said he told his agents, “Whatever you guys do, just get this done.”
He is widely expected to be joined at Liverpool soon by his Leverkusen teammate, star attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz. Liverpool has reportedly offered 109 million pounds ($146.8 million), including add-ons, for the 22-year-old Germany international.
The 24-year-old Frimpong has blossomed since arriving in 2021 at Leverkusen, where he was an attacking wing back under Xabi Alonso. He was one of the German team's star players in its unbeaten Bundesliga campaign in the 2023-24 season.
Frimpong is a like-for-like replacement for Alexander-Arnold, who announced on May 5 he was leaving Liverpool after a 20-year association. Liverpool received a fee on Friday to let Alexander-Arnold leave in time to play for Real Madrid at the Club World Cup.
Frimpong will compete with Conor Bradley for the right back position and give Liverpool manager Arne Slot the option of switching to a 3-5-2.
Frimpong has played 12 times for the Netherlands, though his international opportunities have been limited because of competition for right wing back with Inter Milan star Denzel Dumfries. Frimpong more recently played as an out-an-out winger against Spain in the Nations League playoffs.
Born in Amsterdam, Frimpong grew up in Manchester and played for City's academy. He has said he had a hard time adapting to Celtic after leaving City in 2019 as he was farther away from family, but felt more comfortable in Germany.
Frimpong’s departure increases the scope of the rebuild Leverkusen and its new coach Erik ten Hag face following the departure of Xabi Alonso for Real Madrid.
Along with Wirtz being expected to join Liverpool, Leverkusen’s longest-serving outfield player, defender Jonathan Tah, is leaving for Bayern Munich after 10 years at the club. The German champion announced his signing on Thursday.
Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said Frimpong’s career trajectory showed the club's way of doing business.
That means “bringing in a young, highly talented player from a lower league, developing him into a key player to achieve our goals, and thus making him attractive to top European clubs," Rolfes said.
“Through this transfer we can and will put together Leverkusen’s squad of the future."
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
The Associated Press
