Bristol City have reportedly agreed to sign ex-Liverpool academy forward Ranel Young, who will come to Ashton Gate at the start of the forthcoming winter transfer window.
According to a report from Football Insider on Tuesday evening, the 19-year-old is presently playing for Serbian First League club FK Usce Novi Beograd.
It is shaping up to be a crucial transfer window for Gerhard Struber and the Robins, who are currently competing for a berth in the play-offs at the end of the regular Championship season.
City, of course, understands what it takes to finish in the top six in this division, having done so last season under Liam Manning, who left for Norwich City, paving the way for Struber to sign a three-year contract in the West Country, just a few weeks after being relieved of his duties as FC Koln’s manager as the German club returned to the Bundesliga.
Heading into Christmas Day, the Austrians are in ninth place, having taken 33 points from their first 22 games, the last of which was a statement 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough, handing the Teessiders their first defeat under newly-appointed head coach Kim Hellberg.
Struber hasn’t made the most changes from the team that made the playoffs last season under Manning. However, it is evident that additional reinforcements are required in January as the Robins continue to suffer from a huge injury issue, with on-loan Manchester United goalkeeper Radek Vitek becoming the most recent victim on this particularly terrible front.
However, just a few days after news surfaced that City and the aforementioned Young had held preliminary negotiations about a possible return to English football, it appears that the second-tier club has secured a deal for the former Liverpool prospect.
Bristol City have agreed to sign former Liverpool winger Ranel Young for £0.
The aforementioned occurrences were first reported by local magazine Bristol Live on December 17th, with Young fighting for regular minutes at his present club in Serbia’s second division.
Young joined the Belgrade-based club only a few months ago, after it was revealed that he had unexpectedly turned down the opportunity to renew his contract with Liverpool after the Merseyside outfit reclaimed the Premier League title for the first time in five years under Arne Slot.
Football Insider then revealed that a deal had been agreed between Young and the Championship club, while also claiming that he had cancelled his contract with FK Usce Novi Beograd, opting to leave the club after only five appearances following his first foray into European football outside of the Liverpool youth ranks, where he had competed in the UEFA Youth League.
However, the same outlet has now reported that negotiations between the two parties have progressed further following City’s excellent victory over Middlesbrough over the weekend.
As a result, it has been reported that a deal has been done, which means that, if all goes as planned, the 19-year-old will be officially announced as a Robins player when the transfer window reopens on New Year’s Day on a two-year contract.
This also comes just days after talks between City and EFL veteran and former Ipswich Town double promotion-winning captain Sam Morsy advanced to the point where it was reported that an initial six-month deal between the Championship play-off hopefuls and the Egyptian international had been finalised, with the 34-year-old also having the option of staying at Ashton Gate until the end of the 2026/27 season.
Ranel Young’s transfer deal is an exciting development for Bristol City.
Given Young’s lack of senior experience, it remains to be seen what immediate ideas Struber has for him, especially given City’s lack of depth, particularly in midfield.
After signing from his local club, Huddersfield Town, at the Under-12 level, the winger proceeded through Liverpool’s junior divisions before receiving his first professional contract in May 2023.
Despite never appearing in a first-team game at Anfield, Young was designated an unused substitute in the EFL Cup against Brighton and Hove Albion and Plymouth Argyle last season.
Of course, being at a club of Liverpool’s magnitude for so long, even in the academy, implies that Young is certainly a good player whose skills were not well suited to the style of FK Usce.
It remains to be seen whether this acquisition will be a success, but on a free transfer, it isn’t the largest risk made by Bristol City.
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