Liverpool have been dealt a major blow in their pursuit of Dinamo Zagreb playmaker Marko Pjaca as his move to Juventus is reportedly a “done deal.” 

According to Sportske (via Calciomercato), the 21-year-old Croatian star has snubbed AC Milan in favour of a €25 million (£21.1 million) switch to Serie A champions Juve.

Calciomercato’s report stated that, contrary to Sportske‘s claim, the deal is not yet actually sealed, but the transfer fee has been agreed between Juve and Dinamo.

What does seem clear is that, barring a major U-turn, Liverpool will miss out on signing Pjaca having been linked with him during Euro 2016, along with Inter Milan and Napoli, per SportMediaset (via Football Italia).

Pjaca impressed immensely during the France tournament, particularly as Croatia beat Spain, and he proved how effective he can be running at opposition defences, per Opta:

Versatile, Zagreb-born Pjaca is most comfortable playing out wide on either flank but can also operate as a central striker.

He will slot in at Juventus nominally as a replacement for Alvaro Morata—they are both exciting young attacking talents—but he would have been the ideal signing for Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

Pjaca is exactly the type of dynamic and creative player that Klopp likes, and he would likely have fit in well alongside Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge.

However, it looks as though Liverpool’s only chance of signing Pjaca now is if there are complications in Juve completing the deal, although Milan may be the ones to swoop in that case, per Gianluca Di Marzio (via translator David Amoyal):

Milan could also reportedly cause Liverpool problems with another target, Udinese’s 22-year-old midfielder Piotr Zielinski.

According to Calciomercato, Milan and Udinese have agreed a price of about €19 million (£16 million) for the Poland international, although Zielinski “is still tempted” by a move to Liverpool.

Liverpool had an initial bid of £11.75 million rejected and will seemingly need to up their offer considerably to beat Milan to Zielinski’s signature, per the Mirror‘s David Anderson:

He has been on loan at Empoli for the last two seasons and netted five goals while providing four assists in 35 Serie A appearances in 2015-16, per WhoScored.com.

Most comfortable in a central playmaking role, Zielinski would provide useful competition and cover at Liverpool for the likes of Coutinho, Firmino and Adam Lallana, but he may prove too expensive a gamble. 

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