Takefusa Kubo has already made his feelings clear about Liverpool

Liverpool are reportedly in talks to sign former Barcelona and Real Madrid starlet Takefusa Kubo, and the Japan international has previously spoken highly of the Reds

Takefusa Kubo has previously described Liverpool as an "amazing team" amid reports that the Real Sociedad star is signing for the Reds. The ECHO understands such talk is somewhat premature, and there is no suggestion that Kubo is on the brink of becoming a Liverpool player as things stand, but what is clear is he has shown an interest in the Reds before.

During April 2019, to be precise. Jurgen Klopp's side had just qualified for the Champions League semi-finals after sweeping aside Porto, and the team was in the middle of what would become a nine-match Premier League winning streak. Over in Japan, a teenage Kubo was watching on keenly.

"The team I find interesting in terms of football right now is Liverpool," Kubo told Goal unprompted in an interview, translated from Japanese, after being asked which teams he liked and asserting that he does not have a favourite. "When I watch them, I feel like, 'What an amazing team.' This is a little different from 'liking' them; it's more like "they're amazing."

The interviewer, Akihiko Kawabata, then noted the Reds were a team with fast players at the time - assumedly alluding to Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane - suggesting that Kubo enjoys teams like that. "I really like them," Kubo replied. "Fast and skilled players like that. I think there are players like that on every team at a strong club, and when I watch them, I think, 'Wow, they're amazing.'"

While Mane is long gone, Kubo still has time to call Salah a teammate. Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz are also no slouches on this current side. Earlier in the interview, the player also explained why those are the players he prefers to watch. "I'm not particularly fast myself, so I really like players who have overwhelming speed," Kubo said. "They're fun to watch."