Forget The Fitness Talk, Bajcetic’s Contract Is The Real Issue

Pre-season has started at Kirkby, and yet Liverpool are still stuck dealing with a familiar absence. Stefan Bajcetic remains out of the group, and in our view that is no longer just a fitness footnote, it is quickly becoming the actual story.

Another Session Missed, Another Day Lost

Andoni Iraola has walked into a squad that is short in numbers for a mix of reasons this summer, some players still away on international duty, others managing niggles, and Bajcetic sitting in a category of his own. The 21-year-old did not feature in a single minute of first team football last season, and for a midfielder once tipped as one of the more exciting academy products in years, that kind of absence represents a genuine setback to his development rather than a minor delay.

Iraola’s own update on the squad was blunt and to the point. He confirmed that Bajcetic is progressing, albeit gradually, but is still not cleared to train fully with the rest of the group, and that Wataru Endo remains in a similar holding pattern. Improvement on paper only counts for so much when a player still is not out on the grass with his teammates, and pre-season is exactly the window where that gap tends to widen rather than close.

The Contract Clock Changes the Conversation

We think the more pressing detail here is not the injury itself but the calendar around it. Bajcetic has now entered the final year of his contract, and that reframes everything. This stops being purely a medical story and becomes a football decision that both club and player need clarity on sooner rather than later.

Reports of interest from clubs in Spain are not remotely surprising given the situation, and frankly there is still a talented player worth taking a chance on. Bajcetic showed real composure and bite when he first forced his way into the side back in 2023, and the doubts around him have never really been about ability. They have always been about whether his body will let him show it consistently.

Our Take: A Crossroads, Not a Crisis

Iraola’s language at least suggests Bajcetic has not been written off internally, there is no hint of him being pushed to one side in the manager’s planning. But being part of the thinking means very little until he can train without setbacks and stay fit for a sustained run, and that remains the real test in front of him.

Our sense is that this situation is heading toward a genuine crossroads rather than a slow fade. If Bajcetic gets his body right, there is still a role to fight for at Liverpool. If he does not, both sides will eventually have to make a difficult call rather than let it drift into another lost year. For now, supporters are simply waiting on the one update that has been missing from every bulletin so far, an actual return date.