Stefan Bajcetic's Potential Return to Celta Vigo as Liverpool Talks Intensify

Liverpool’s midfield overhaul is not finished yet. Curtis Jones has already gone, sold to Inter Milan in a deal that could reach £30 million. Now the spotlight has swung sharply onto Stefan Bajcetic – and the road appears to be leading back to Celta Vigo.

The Spanish club, according to Faro de Vigo, are pushing hard to bring the 21-year-old home. Not on loan. Not via a big-money bid. Their preferred route is far cleaner – and far more brutal for Liverpool: terminate his contract and pick him up as a free agent.

Bajcetic is still tied to Liverpool until 2027. On paper, that looks like security. In reality, it has become a complication. Celta do not want to negotiate a traditional transfer package. They want opportunity without heavy outlay, a low-risk gamble on a player they know intimately.

From Anfield promise to crossroads

Two years ago, Bajcetic looked like the next long-term pillar of Liverpool’s midfield. Calm on the ball, fearless without it, tactically sharp. He carried the profile of a modern holding midfielder and, for a spell, it felt as though Liverpool had unearthed their solution from within.

Then the momentum snapped.

Injuries stalled his rise. Loan spells failed to rebuild rhythm or status. While he tried to reset his career, the picture at Anfield shifted again under Andoni Iraola, with competition intensifying and his pathway narrowing. He has not made a senior appearance in more than two years. For a player once seen as a fast-track talent, that statistic is stark.

Liverpool now face a hard call. Do they cling to the hope that Bajcetic can still force his way back, or accept that a clean break may be better for everyone?

Celta’s plan: rebuild, not rush

From Celta Vigo’s side, the plan is clear. This is not about parachuting Bajcetic straight into La Liga and demanding instant impact. The idea, as reported, is to ease him in through Celta Fortuna, the club’s reserve side, and then gradually push him towards the first team once fitness and confidence return.

It is a return to his boyhood environment, a familiar setting where he first learned the game. The emotional pull is obvious. So is the developmental logic. Celta see a player whose talent never disappeared, only his continuity.

Head coach Claudio Giráldez chose his words carefully when asked about the situation.

“If he's happy and we can reach an agreement, it would be a good situation, but I'm not thinking about that right now,” he said. “He's a homegrown player; I don't talk about players we don't have. If I talk about any of them, it's those who have been here before because we understand that we always have a stronger connection, and on top of that, we have a very good relationship. I coached him. If it happens, great, but I don't talk about players we don't have.”

The interest is real. So is the restraint. But the direction of travel feels obvious.

Sevilla and Getafe have also been linked during this window, yet Celta carry something the others do not: history, roots, and a clear, staged plan for his reintegration.

Liverpool’s midfield gamble

All of this plays out against a shifting landscape at Liverpool. Jones has gone. Bajcetic may follow. On paper, that looks like a thinning of technical midfield options.

Inside the club, though, there is faith that the gap can be covered from within. Trey Nyoni and James McConnell are expected to step into the spaces created in the short term. That internal trust helps explain why there is no immediate rush to sign a like-for-like replacement.

If Bajcetic’s contract is indeed terminated and he walks away, it would underline a broader strategic choice: streamline rather than stockpile. Trust the pathway. Trim those who are blocked or broken by circumstance.

It is a bold stance for a club that knows how quickly depth can vanish over the course of a long season.

A promising story nearing its final page

There is a sense now that this is not a negotiation in its infancy but an outcome gathering pace. For Bajcetic, Celta Vigo offers something he desperately needs: a realistic route back into competitive rhythm and a career that has drifted off course.

For Liverpool, it feels like the closing chapter of a story that never quite fulfilled its early promise at Anfield. A player who once looked ready to anchor their midfield could leave quietly, his contract cut short, his next steps taken not under the lights of a packed Premier League stadium, but with a reserve side in Spain.

If the deal happens, most around Liverpool will understand it. Many will still feel the sting. Because this was supposed to be different.