Liverpool have been backed to potentially enter the transfer race for one of the most highly-rated young defenders in Europe.With Virgil van Dijk now 35 and into the final year of his contract, Anfield chiefs have been busy future-proofing the centre of defence with the signings of Jeremy Jacquet (21) and Giovanni Leoni (19) in the past 18 months.The Reds also have the likes of Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe in the queue to potentially break into the first team in the foreseeable future, and it appears that they have their sights set on another teenage centre-back.Liverpool backed for potential Luka Vuskovic swoopSpeaking on the latest episode of Football Insider‘s Transfer Insider podcast, Pete O’Rourke has backed Liverpool to potentially look at trying to sign Luka Vuskovic in the coming months.The transfer correspondent said of the Brighton defender: “He looks like a special talent – there’s no getting away from that. This form is going to attract interest from top clubs, not just in the Premier League but across Europe.“There’s been talk of Real Madrid also being interested in Vuskovic, and I’m sure Liverpool are as well. A lot of the top guns are keeping tabs on the Croatian international because he does look like a player with huge potential who probably will only get better and better.”The 19-year-old became Brghton’s record signing at £46m from Tottenham in July (BBC Sport), but the Seagulls now believe he’s worth more than twice that amount and value him at £100m.(Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)Want more Empire of the Kop coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trustWill Liverpool make a move for Vuskovic in 2027?Liverpool had reportedly discussed the possibility of moving for Vuskovic earlier this year while he was on loan at Hamburg from Spurs, although his price tag is sure to have skyrocketed since then.Merlin Polzin, his head coach in northern Germany last season, hailed him as an ‘exceptional talent’ and also waxed lyrical about the teenager’s work rate, noting how he’s never satisfied with his output even when putting in extra hours outside of team training (Bundesliga.com).As seen below with data from Fotmob, the Croatian is among the top centre-backs in the Premier League so far this term for a variety of metrics including his ball distribution and his dominance in duels.2026/27 Premier LeaguePer 90 minutesPercentile among positional peersDuels won6.9987th (top 13%)Aerial duels won4.5190thAerial duel success68.9%70thPasses completed60.2974thPassing success89.8%73rdAccurate long balls3.7979thLong ball success55.3%76thLiverpool chiefs will have the chance to assess Vuskovic up close on Sunday when Brighton come to Anfield (weather permitting), although it’d require an enormous show of faith from the Reds to land the highly-rated defender amid his fantastic start to life at the Amex Stadium.The Reds have a lengthy queue of young centre-backs waiting to step up if Van Dijk departs next summer, but the 19-year-old Seagulls defender might be impossible to ignore, and not just because of his towering 6 foot 4 stature.The post Transfer insider backs Liverpool for potential 2027 swoop for ‘exceptional’ £100m record breaker appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.