Parma CEO Federico Cherubini revealed that they had received a higher offer for Giovanni Leoni from Newcastle United before they sold the defender to Liverpool for €35 million (£30m/$40m) in the summer transfer window. The Reds were in search of a new defender earlier in the summer and after going through multiple profiles, they zeroed in on Leoni.

Liverpool have confirmed that Giovanni Leoni suffered knee ligament damage when making his competitive debut for the club in a Carabao Cup clash with Southampton. The teenage defender only moved to Anfield over the summer from Parma in his native Italy. Reds boss Arne Slot has announced that the talented youngster is expected to be sidelined for "around a year".

Oliver Glasner says Marc Guehi has shrugged off the disappointment of seeing a Liverpool transfer fall through and is now focusing only on Crystal Palace. The 25-year-old looked set to make a switch to Anfield on summer deadline day, only for the move to collapse at the eleventh hour. Amid speculation the Reds may return for him in January, Glasner has no concerns about Guehi's professionalism.

Every month, GOAL brings you the top stories involving teenage wonderkids and the world's best young footballers. During September, there was plenty to be said about the likes of Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid's Franco Mastantuono, but there were also plenty of other headlines made by the planet's emerging stars in both the men's and women's games.

Liverpool are set to sign Italian youngster Giovanni Leoni and we look into why the Parma defender would be such a smart addition

Liverpool wonderkid Giovanni Leoni sent out a positive message after undergoing Anterior Cruciate Ligament surgery. Leoni suffered knee ligament damage when making his competitive debut for the club in a Carabao Cup clash with Southampton last week and will not remain out of action for almost a year. The teenage defender only moved to Anfield over the summer from Parma.