Liverpool 'set to sign 14-year-old defender' praised by Yaya Toure

Liverpool are set to seal the signing of a 14-year-old midfielder praised by Manchester City legend Yaya Toure, according to a new report.

When it comes to signing young players, English clubs can no longer can sign players from outside of the UK before the age of 18 due to Brexit rules.

As a result, clubs must now focus on bringing in domestic young talent, rather than scouting overseas to identify the best players.

Manchester United recently completed the signing of 16-year-old striker Gabriele Biancheri from Championship side Cardiff City.

And last year, Arsenal swooped to agree a pre-contract with West Brom wonderkid left-back Lino Sousa, who joined the club on professional terms when he turned 17 in January 2022.

Now, according to a new report, Liverpool have agreed a deal with a 14-year-old player.

Liverpool 'set to sign 14-year-old'

The Secret Scout claims that the Reds are set to sign defender Harvey Owen from fellow Premier League club Wolves for a fee of around £800,000.

It is reported that Owen has agreed a pre-scholarship deal with the Reds. FA laws state that players under the age of 17 cannot enter into a contract of employment at a club, unless under a scholarship deal, which can be offered up to a length of two years once a player turns 14 and then evaluated once they turn 16.

Owen has previously been praised by City legend Toure, with the Ivorian, who is now a first team coach at Tottenham after retiring from playing, speaking to the defender after a friendly against Wolves last year.

Wolves development coach Wes Hughes told the club's website: "We recently played at Tottenham and he had a nice pat on the back from an ex-player in Yaya Toure.

"He personally went up to Harvey and said that he had a lot of potential and would be a really good player in the future, so I think he'll be really proud of that.

"Harvey was introduced to the group last year [2021] as a 13-year-old playing in the U15 Youth Cup. The boys went on and did quite well in the competition and got to the semi-final - Harvey was a part of that journey."