Liverpool are poised to sign 14-year-old Wolves wonderkid Harvey Owen, a player who Yaya Toure rates highly.
The Reds will finalise an £800,000 deal with their Premier League rivals, according to reports, to continue their streak of snapping up some of Britain's finest young talent. Last summer, Liverpool signed Celtic hotshot Ben Doak for £600,000 when he was just 16.
Now Wolves defender Owen is in line to follow him to Anfield, with former Manchester City and Barcelona powerhouse Toure one of his many plaudits. As revealed by Wolves academy coach Wes Hughes, Toure - now working in Tottenham 's academy - took a liking to the young centre-back during a recent clash between their youth sides.
"We recently played at Tottenham and he had a nice pat on the back from an ex-player in Yaya Toure," Hughes told Wolves' website. "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."
Owen is highly regarded in Wolverhampton and has regularly played among higher age groups. "Harvey was introduced to the group last year as a 13-year-old playing in the under-15s youth cup," Hughes explained. "The boys went on and did quite well in the competition and got to the semi-final - Harvey was a part of that journey and the boys really took to him as a younger player.
"He's a right-footed player who likes to play on the left side at the back - whether that's in a back three or a back four. He's come on leaps and bounds in terms of his football. We truly believe if he can overcome some difficulties and embrace some of the adversity, he can surprise a few."
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The Secret Scout, who broke the story, note that Owen has been offered scholarship as part of Liverpool's plans for the future. Due to a Brexit ruling, clubs in England are no longer permitted to sign players from outside of the UK until they turn 18, which makes winning the race for the likes of Owen and teenage forward Doak even more important.
It's set to be a busy summer at Anfield, with boss Jurgen Klopp declaring in April that the Reds will be active in the transfer market at senior level. "We play a very average season, we have to do business in the market - we will do it!" Klopp, under pressure to respond after a disappointing campaign, affirmed.
"Spending in football combined with football knowledge will lead to improvement, that's very likely. So, it's not rocket science we are talking about. We have the year we have, but we will be ready to fight again, for whatever. We will see that - you will see that."
