Liverpool youngster Sepp van den Berg has insisted he will only deal with his future after the U21 European Championship but wants it clarifying sooner rather than later.
The defender has sat down for a conversation with WAZ in Germany as he comes towards the end of a loan spell with Schalke.
He’s been with the Bundesliga side since the summer but only featured in seven games in the league this season after missing much of the campaign through injury.
The loan spell comes to an end in the summer, when he will be due to return to Liverpool as the current deal doesn’t include a purchase option or the option to extend the loan into another year.
Schalke would like to keep him but whether Liverpool will sanction anything remains to be seen, particularly with the German side not yet certain they will be in the Bundesliga next season.
Van den Berg isn’t sure what will happen either, but admits he wants the issue dealt with as the uncertainty isn’t to his liking.
“I get messages regularly,” he said.
“There were especially many after the games against Bremen and Mainz. Assistant coach Pepijn Lijnders also congratulated me. But I’m not in daily contact with Liverpool officials now.
“I’m a family guy and at Schalke I was immediately welcomed as a member of the family. That made me feel at home very quickly. I get along with everyone here. I also fit in well here in terms of gameplay, and I want to prove that again in the last two league games.
“There have already been initial talks with those responsible about remaining at Schalke. But we have to wait. Our last two games are the most important now.
“In the summer I hope to take part in the U21 European Championship. Only then will it be decided where I will play in the coming season – it was similar in the past three years.
“At some moments it is difficult and stressful not to know in which country I will be living in a few months. You would like to settle down in one place.
“If one day my home club Liverpool would tell me I could stay and get my caps that would be great, but now I’m at Schalke and I want the team to achieve our goal of staying up. After the end of the season I will be back in Liverpool to talk about the near future.”
