Last summer, Liverpool allowed Stefan Bajčetić to join Red Bull Salzburg on a season-long loan deal. He made 19 appearances for the Austrian club, but his stay there was cut short in January.
Liverpool let the midfielder join UD Las Palmas on loan in the same window and this move has paid off, with him featuring in every league game for the La Liga side so far.
On Monday, the Liverpool owned player will face his former club when Las Palmas take on Celta Vigo in the league. Ahead of this clash, today’s edition of Marca had a chat with his former Celta youth coach Álex Abalde and Celta scouting director Álex Otero.
Otero was the one who identified the Spain U21 international and signed him for Celta in 2013. Abalde managed him during Bajčetić’s time at the Spanish club’s academy. The current Celta director points out the youngster’s calmness.
“He wasn’t affected by pressure, cameras, or competition. He didn’t care whether it was a friendly or playing against Real Madrid or Barça,” he said.
This, according to the former coach, impacted Bajčetić on the pitch at times.
“To tell the truth, he was absent-minded. He would zone out easily, and as a way to refocus, we would say a word to him in Serbian. I think it was ‘idemo,’ which translates as ‘let’s go’ in Spanish. He would say it out loud, and it helped him reconnect,” Abalde explained.
Bajčetić joined Liverpool’s academy in 2020 and was promoted to their senior team two years later. He became the Merseyside club’s third youngster scorer when he scored in their 3-1 league win over Aston Villa in December 2022.
On his move to Liverpool and the quick rise at Anfield, Abalde said: “I felt so happy and proud.”
The Liverpool man’s ‘meteoric rise’ was cut short by injuries in 2023. Abalde is currently at Bergantiños FC as the assistant coach and gave his take on Bajčetić’s loan move to Las Palmas.
“[It] is a very good destination to recover what he lost with the injury and the little time he played in Austria,” he added.
