Liverpool midfielder Stefan Bajcetic has labelled his experience against Luka Modric and Real Madrid as "important".
The Reds suffered a chastening defeat to Los Blancos in the Champions League last 16 first leg at the end of February but for the 18-year-old Spaniard, the result came during a period of eye-catching performances. Despite still being in his teens, the former Celta Vigo youngster has waltzed into the midfield during a time of uncertainty and criticism.
Modric illustrated that age is just a number at Anfield on that night in February as the 37-year-old assisted Eder Militao's header before his barnstorming run played its part in Karim Benzema's second goal. Going toe-to-toe with the multiple-time Champions League winner, the Spanish youngster is looking to carry those lessons on.
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"You played against one of the best midfielders in the last decade and of course you learn from them," he said in an interview with The Times. "The experience from a big game is important too. Modric was special. He is so very calm with the ball, he doesn’t feel pressure.
"If you press him, he knows everything that is around him. That impressed me a lot. Hopefully, one day, I can be close to him, but I don’t know."
Former Barcelona and Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcantara has helped guide him since his move to England last year. The pair have a closer relationship than meets the eye as Thiago's dad Mazinho played with Srdan Bajcetic for a season at Celta Vigo in the mid-1990s.
The rise of the junior Bajcetic is one that has caught many by surprise, not least the 18-year-old, but it's Jurgen Klopp who has put faith in him and is beginning to reap the rewards following a gradual introduction before cementing a starting place.
Following the sobering defeats at the start of the calendar year, the midfielder has been everpresent in the starting 11 with eyebrows being raised for his inclusions against the likes of Everton - which were quickly eradicated after a player of the match performance.
He added: "I’m just trying to help the team and at the same time, I’m trying to learn as well. I need to keep working hard.
"I want to stay here [in the team]. I’m smiling because I wasn’t expecting it to happen this quick or this early in my life. But I am taking it — 100 per cent, I’m taking it!
"He [Klopp] sees me every day in training and he tells me to show my confidence. He likes my intensity, I think. He wants me to be intense but calm with the ball."
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