At the backend of a forgettable campaign, the emergence of Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones will have been a pleasing consolation for manager Jurgen Klopp, with the Scouse-born ace playing an important part in a seven-match winning run to bridge the gap to the top four.
It was too little too late, and the Reds failed to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in seven years with a fifth-placed finish, ending an illustrious run in the competition that has led the Anfield side to three finals, winning one.
Hailed as the "complete #8" by one analyst & scout, the 22-year-old has almost certainly earned a place in Klopp's plans next term after his purple patch, especially considering James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have all left the club following the expiry of their contracts.
And now, the Guardian report that Chelsea are the latest team to have joined the race for the 21-year-old, but that Liverpool and Barcelona are both wanting to claim the player's signature for themselves, all looking to meet his €40m (£34m) buyout clause.
How good is Gabri Veiga?
The £35m signing of Alexis Mac Allister is the first of an ostensible torrent of incomings, with two or three top-class acquisitions still expected to be made, and one, the precocious Spanish talent Veiga, could spell danger for Jones' role on Merseyside.
Despite the recently-concluded campaign being Veiga's first with regular top-flight football, he has plundered 11 goals and supplied a further four assists from just 28 LaLiga starts, earning acclaim for his "dangerous" skill set – as said by journalist Euan McTear.
It's quite frightening to envisage the fleet-footed midfielder's future, given how brilliantly he has taken to life at the top level, already ranking among the top 1% of midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for rate of non-penalty goals, the top 20% for rate of assists, the top 12% for progressive carries and successful take-ons, and the top 11% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90, as per FBref.
The praise is mounting: talent scout Jacek Kulig has marvelled at the "amazing" talent while journalist and content creator Rimedi dubbed him "baby Kaka" for his elegance on the ball and deft dribbling skills.
Jones boasts some impressive metrics of his own after starting the last 11 league matches of the year, scoring three goals and registering one assist, ranking among the top 6% of positional peers for rate of non-penalty goals, the top 20% for shot-creating actions and the top 14% for progressive carries per 90, also crisp as they come with the ball, ranking among the top 3% for pass completion.
Klopp will be wary of hampering Jones' progress but with such a fantastic starlet available for an affordable fee, it's simply too good an opportunity to cede, especially given the tumult of Liverpool's present situation. Indeed, this move could be a blow to one of Anfield's hottest young talents.
