Jürgen Klopp expressed his delight at bringing Marko Grujić to Anfield after the Serbian became his first signing as Liverpool manager on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old midfielder put pen-to-paper on a five-year deal to confirm his £5.1 million switch from Red Star Belgrade, where he will return to see out the rest of the 2015-16 season on loan.

Having fought off various European clubs, some of whom offered higher transfer fees, for his signature thanks to the manager's personal intervention - Klopp believes the Reds have pulled off a coup by bringing Grujić in.

Klopp pleased with Grujić capture

Sitting down with Liverpoolfc.com to discuss the deal, Klopp declared himself "very pleased" with securing a "big talent" who he insisted he has seen "a lot of times."

He explained that when he first arrived on Merseyside in October, the scouts showed him "some footage of a very skilled player from Red Star Belgrade" and described that the next step was: "We watched, we spoke to him and we met each other."

He spoke highly of the player, saying he's "a good boy" who "plays an important role at the moment at Red Star" who he called "the best team in Serbia." 

The German, whose Bosnian Serb assistant manager Željko Buvač recommended Grujić and has extensive knowledge of the Serbian SuperLiga, said that it is a country "where a lot of good football players have come from in the last 20-30 years."

He added that there have been plenty of "big players" coming from Serbia due to their "good mentality, good technical skills" and their ability to be "open for tactical advice and things like this."

Klopp willing to taken burden of responsibility for player's future 

Giving his explanation of Grujić's talents, he said that the teenager is "a tally boy, but quick and good at technical things" who can "play passes and can dribble" but declared that "he is young" so "he has to develop" - which Klopp believes he is confident the player "will do."

The Serbian learned his trade in Red Star's football academy where he spent eight years before making his first-team debut in May 2013 at the age of just 17.

After a four-month loan spell Serbian First League side FK Kolubara, Grujić soon established himself as a first-team regular for Red Star and he has taken on a shining role in the current season - helping them to lead 25 points ahead of second-place at the time of the Winter break.

Grujić will return to his homeland to continue his important role in the squad, having missed only one top-flight match all year, to help secure the league title and seal a berth in the UEFA Champions League.

Speaking about the midfielder's impressions of Liverpool, Klopp vowed that Grujić is "impressed" because of the size of the club and added: "For a young player like this, if you are smart enough so you don't think, 'I can conquer the world in one day' and know you have to learn – that’s what he has asked me for and what our plans are with him."

Klopp said that he now personally feels "a big responsibility" for the player's "improvement" and "development" but insisted Grujić is "impressed" and "looking forward to it" having "watched all of our last few games." 

He added that Red Star "have a winter break" at the moment and so the player "has a little bit of time" to rest, but said that "at the end of the season he will come here well prepared and start pre-season with us and then we'll see."

Boss confident Grujić can adapt to English football

With the decision to send him back to Red Star for the remainder of the current campaign inspired by his father's wishes, Klopp believes Grujić will benefit from extra time back in Belgrade.

He said that it is "a difficult situation" at Red Star, because they are "far ahead" at the top-of-the-table but "they have to play play-offs so they are far away from reaching a conclusion."

Klopp added that they have "to start nearly new" and called it "important to have a competition like this" but also said: "Of course, he is 19 years old and with the family and things like this, so there is no rush in this. He made the decision, we made the decision - good decision."

On whether Grujić will be able to translate his qualities into the more physical English top-flight, Klopp said: "We will see, but of course, that's what we think and you always need to have a little bit of fantasy because the leagues are different but he's tall enough and young enough to get strongers and all these things."

He said that "the skills he has now have made him the player we wanted" and speculated that they should only improve after Grujić and Liverpool "start working together" - predicting that he "will be good for the Premier League."

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About the author
Charlie Malam
Digital Sports Writer at the Daily Express. First-class Staffordshire University Sports Journalism graduate. Formerly VAVEL UK's Liverpool FC editor and Deputy Editor-in-Chief. Contributor since June 2014.