Liverpool's Marko Grujic makes Porto move permanent
Serbian midfielder Marko Grujic, the first signing of the Jürgen Klopp era at Liverpool, has ended his five-year association with the Reds by joining Porto.
Liverpool midfielder Marko Grujic joined Porto on a permanent deal on Tuesday. The 25-year-old spent 2020-21 on loan with the Primeira Liga club, making 39 appearances in all competitions. That was Grujic's most recent spell away from Liverpool, whom he joined from Red Star Belgrade in 2016, having also previously spent half a season with Cardiff City and two years at Hertha Berlin. He was the first signing of the Jürgen Klopp era at Anfield but featured just 16 times for the Reds in all competitions.
Liverpool trim squad
Serbia international Grujic linked up with the Liverpool squad for this month's pre-season training camp in Austria, but the Merseyside outfit confirmed on Tuesday that he has officially ended his five-year association with the club. "Everyone at Liverpool FC thanks Marko for his contributions to the club and wishes him the best in his future career," the 2019-20 Premier League champions said in a statement.
Porto are reported to have paid an initial €12.15million (£10.5m) for Grujic, who was also rumoured to be a target for fellow Portuguese side Sporting Clube de Portugal and Italian club Sassuolo.
Grujic scored twice as Porto finished second to Sporting in the Primeira Liga last season and featured eight times in Sergio Conceição's side's run to the Champions League quarter-finals.
Grujic in numbers
The 6.94 aerial duels Grujic won per 90 minutes in the Portuguese top flight last season was behind only Pedro Henrique (7.94) and Rio Ave's Ronan (8.62) among those to have featured more than three times in the competition. Grujic also won more tackles per 90 minutes than any other Porto player who started six or more games in the league last season, the Serbian's tally of 1.32 putting him slightly ahead of Otavio (1.31).