Liverpool FC are reportedly on the cusp of signing young Serbian Lazar Markovic, so what would the versatile attacker bring to the club?
Born in Serbia, Lazar Markovic began his fledgling football career at Partizan Belgrade. Markovic joined the academy at the age of twelve and was promoted to the first team in the 2011-12 season, big things were expected. The Serb's debut season was a mixed bag; 26 appearances were made by Markovic, reaping a respectable but unspectacular 6 goals - the second half of the season was a disappointment as the forward failed to register on the scoresheet for the rest of the campaign. Regardless of the fizzle-out, Markovic was named in the team of the season for this campaign.
Ears around Europe began to prick up at the sound of the name Lazar Markovic over the coming years. After another successful league campaign with Partizan in which the Serbian was once again named in the team of they year, coupled with a noteworthy Champions League debut, clubs around Europe began to fawn.
Benfica were to be Lazar's next destination as he joined the club in 2013. The details of the players contract were murky, many thought that Chelsea owned a percentage of the rights to the player; leading then Partizan president Durc to claim that 'Chelsea wants to loan Markovic to Benfica for 2 years'. Thus, any future deal for the young prodigy seemed to be virtually impossible, with a sense of inevitability that he would end up at the Blues. However, this does not seem to be the case, it has been reported that Markovic could be a Liverpool player as early as Wednesday this week (9th July).
So, what would the 20 year old forward bring to the club? The answer to that question is layered but most obviously, pace! Lazar Markovic possess searing speed that will be a huge addition to Liverpool FC. Pressing, winning the ball back & quick transition from defence to attack became the identity of last season - Markovic will contribute to that immensely. Not only does Markovic posses a breath taking initial burst of pace but it's sustainable, making the player a fantastic dribbler - those who have seen Markovic play for Benfica will vouch for how effortlessly he glides forward.
The Serbian is also neat and tidy with his feet, an 81% pass accuracy in Europa league last year demonstrates this. Once again key to Liverpool's quick transitions is players who are adept with the ball, it seems Markovic certainly is that. His comfort on the ball, as well as surging runs, make the player a versatile addition. Markovic was used primarily on the right wing for Benfica (often coming on from the bench) but is also more than able to play the opposite wing or behind a main striker - the 442 diamond or 433 that Liverpool have adopted seems to be ready made for the Serbian to flourish.
End product is something that Markovic needs to add to his game. For all the pace and successful dribbles, Markovic only netted 5 times domestically last season & once in the Europa league. Lazar is however fairly creative - in eight Europa league appearances he created 3 chances. Considering that 62.5% of his appearances in the Europa league were a substitution on from the bench, those creativity stats are fairly impressive. The young starlet is a solid finisher when presented with an opportunity, he just needs to get himself into more scoring positions... Thankfully, LFC have one of the best attack-minded coaches going.
Lazar Markovic is raw and will need to time to settle but at the tender age of 20 he is showing all the hints that a world class attacker lies beneath.
