Who is Lutsharel Geertruida? Arne Slot 'set to bring' £32million man from Feyenoord

Liverpool is 'interested' in signing Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida - but just who is he? Arne Slot is preparing for his first pre-season in charge of the Reds and could look to reunite with the player in the Premier League.

The 23-year-old arrived in the Feyenoord youth academy from Sparta Rotterdam back in 2012 and proceeded to rise through the academy and making his first team debut in 2017. Geertruida faced AVV Swift in the KNBV Cup as a substitute for Jerry St. Juste.

The defender - who is capable of playing at right-back, centre-back or in midfield - has since gone on to make just under 200 appearances for the Eredivisie side, scoring 19 goals in the process. He has also been capped by the Netherlands on nine occasions and has been included in Ronaldo Koeman's squad for Euro 2024, along with Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo.

READ MORE: Liverpool transfer news LIVE
READ MORE: Matthijs de Ligt has already been told to make Liverpool transfer after Bayern decision

According to Dutch outlet Algemeen Dagblad, Liverpool is 'interested' in signing the Feyenoord defender and will now battle Premier League rivals Arsenal for his signature. Geertruida is valued at around $32.2million (£25.7m/€30m) by Slot's former club, with his current contract set to expire in 2025.

The Reds were even told to sign the player last year by Anfield hero Dirk Kuyt while speaking to the ECHO. “I am a Feyenoord man, and they are doing very well at the moment.

"They have a very good manager in Arne Slot and some of the younger guys like Orkun Kokcu and Lutsharel Geertruida are knocking on the door and playing very well.

“It won’t take long for the interest of top European teams to be there for them. I hope Liverpool is interested in Feyenoord players, and I am an example it can work! When I was working as Under-19s coach, Kokcu and Geertruida were in my team at the time. At Ajax you now have the likes of Jurrien Timber and Kenneth Taylor, who we were playing against.

“You know who the talented players are and you can see they are going to have big futures. Gakpo was a great talent and everyone knew from watching him at youth level that he would one day play for a club like Liverpool.”

Geertruida was even present at the London Stadium for the 2-2 draw between West Ham United and Liverpool back in April - which was around the time when a compensation package for Slot was agreed between the two clubs. Negotiations between the two sides could commence once again this summer, as Slot looks to reunite with his former player at Anfield.

Liverpool.com says: When looking at the profile of the player, it is clear to see why Liverpool is interested. His versatility is one of his main strengths with his ability to play multiple positions. Liverpool was plagued by injuries throughout 2023/24 and with 75% of his appearances coming at right-back and the other 25% of them arriving elsewhere on the pitch, Geertruida offers crucial depth across multiple positions.