Stefan Bajcetic‘s future at Salzburg has come into question following the sacking of Pepijn Lijnders, but it is unclear if Liverpool can recall their loanee.
Lijnders was sacked from his position as head coach of Austrian side Salzburg on Monday, following a difficult start to the campaign that saw them sit fifth in the league.
The Dutchman, formerly assistant manager at Liverpool, failed to coach consistency into his side and they find themselves 10 points off leaders Sturm Graz as well as 32nd in the 36-team Champions League.
In the immediate aftermath of his sacking, there have been questions over whether Bajcetic could now see his loan spell end early.
After all, it was the connection with Lijnders that helped decide on sending the young midfielder to Salzburg for the campaign, on the understanding that their relationship could prove beneficial.
But with Salzburg paying a loan fee to secure Bajcetic’s services for the season, Liverpool are not expected to hold a straightforward recall option.
Instead, the two clubs would be required to negotiate and agree a deal to terminate the loan early, potentially with part of the initial fee waived.
That could still be the case, of course, but it is not as simple as previous recalls for the likes of Calvin Ramsay, Owen Beck and Marcelo Pitaluga.
Liverpool can recall Ben Doak next month, for example, as a clause was stipulated in the club’s terms with Middlesbrough.
Bajcetic’s situation is closer to that seen with Fabio Carvalho while at Salzburg’s sister club RB Leipzig last season, with the German side having paid a loan fee only to later sanction his mid-season release after talks with Liverpool.
Either way, much would depend on Lijnders’ replacement and any plans for Bajcetic moving forward, though it should be noted that the Spaniard did not exactly enjoy a focal role under the former Liverpool coach.
In the first half of the season – with Salzburg now on winter break and not in action again until they host Real Madrid on January 22 – Bajcetic featured in all but three games but only started eight of his 18 appearances.
He only completed the full 90 minutes once, though that may have been more due to Lijnders’ understandable concerns over his fitness.
With Salzburg now on a break from competitive football, it will allow the club plenty of time to get their affairs in order – starting with a replacement head coach.
Informal talks will almost certainly take place with Liverpool, but a recall for Bajcetic is not certain at this stage.
