Exclusive: Bristol City sign ex-Liverpool youngster Ranel Young on free transfer
Bristol City have signed former Liverpool youngster Ranel Young on a free transfer, sources have told Football Insider.
Young, 19, who is a free agent after cancelling his contract at Serbian side FK Usce after less than six months at the club, has signed a two-year deal at Ashton Gate.
Primarily a striker, Young was never able to make his first-team debut at Anfield before leaving for Serbia, where he made just five appearances before pulling the plug.
Football Insider revealed earlier in the month that Bristol City had agreed a deal for Young, with the situation now more advanced just a few days later.
Bristol City fans unsure of Ranel Young signing
The news of Young’s potential arrival was not met with huge excitement from home supporters, but it is clear that Arne Slot had been impressed with the teenager before his Anfield exit.
Joining the youth ranks from Huddersfield Town in 2017, the attacker worked his way through the age groups before signing his first professional contract with the Merseyside giants in 2023.
He made the bench under Slot last season, but having not made it onto the pitch, he left Anfield without his first-team debut, having decided not to agree to new terms with the Reds.
Life after Merseyside has not quite worked out for the young talent, but he might be given another chance if Struber spots something special upon his arrival.
Gerhard Struber has already outlined his targets for January
Having won 10 of his 24 games in charge, the Robins have a very real chance of achieving promotion to the Premier League, or at least can secure a play-off spot this term.
Speaking recently about transfers ahead of next month, the boss said: “I don’t want to bring someone in [just so] that we have, in the end, more numbers.
“I would say we know what we want and, in this direction, we want to improve the squad in January. It’s clear,” but fans are not yet convinced that they will be excited about potential transfers.
Struber’s side are just two points off the top-six spots, and with the second half of the campaign still to play, the right transfers next month could make all the difference come the end of the season.