Lamine Yamal? Here's WHY Liverpool are about to sign someone even BETTER

Liverpool are after a player who has the potential to rival Lamine Yamal for years to come.

For over a decade now, football has been enshrouded in the hegemony of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

The pairs' rivalry has dominated Ballon d'Or ceremonies and pretty much everything else. However, their time is coming to an end. Football is approaching a new dawn.

This new dawn will be led by the likes of Lamine Yamal, who announced himself to the world stage at Euro 2024.

But he won't be alone, and his rival could perhaps be someone who has recently been linked with a move to Liverpool and who already has a bit of a rivalry with the Spanish teenage sensation.

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Why Liverpool target Andrija Maksimovic is on par with Lamine Yamal

Like Ronaldo's and Messi's origin story, Andrija Maksimovic and Yamal have their very own.

It began in Budaors, Hungary in a small county in Budapest. Far away from the glitz and glamour Maksimovic and Yamal first brushed shoulders with each other in front of a few hundred fans in a maximum capacity stadium of just 1200 people.

This was the U17 Euros and I was there covering the tournament as a journalist.

By the time Yamal's Spain and Maksimovic's Serbia took each other on in their final group-game of the competition, it was obvious they were two of the most outstanding talents of the tournament.

Both only 15 years old at the time, Yamal and Maksimovic were part of a group of just 15 players who hadn't even celebrated their 16th birthdays yet.

Heading into the match both players had one goal and one assist from their first two matches.

This final group-game was going to decide who would advance from the group with Serbia needing at least a point to qualify after losing their first game 4-2 before beating Italy 2-0.

Spain, meanwhile had won both of their games comfortably and knew a draw would qualify them as top of the group.

Understandably, the onus was on Serbia in what was a fiercely contested affair.

The first half was a tight game, with neither side giving away too much. In the second, Serbia accelerated their efforts and finally in the 68th minute there was breakthrough.

Maksimovic headed in from close range to take the lead.

1-0.

Ten minutes later though it was Yamal's turn to reply. He took the ball outside the right edge of Serbia's penalty area and thump a terrific shot into the cop corner of the net - in typical Yamal fashion.

1-1.

And that's how it ended.

After three games, both Maksimovic and Yamal had three goal contribution in the tournament. Serbia would then subsequently be eliminated in the next round meanwhile Yamal's Spain lost the semi-final against France - only for him to get his revenge in the senior Euros against the very same opponent a year later.

The potential of Maksimovic

Development is not linear in football. Yamal's and Maksimovic's paths have taken them on different journeys. Yamal is already at the top of the game.

Maksimovic is understandably further away from that. However, that doesn't mean he doesn't have the potential to be on par with Yamal in the future.

There is a reason why Liverpool are desperate to bring him to the club and have very high hopes for the 17-year-old, who became one of Serbia's youngest players to debut in the senior team earlier this year and the youngest ever to do that in a competitive game.

Like Yamal, Maksimovic is breaking records in Serbia. He was one of the youngest players to play in the fierce Eternal Derby between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan Belgrade.

He's only the second youngest player in Crvena Zvezda's history to score a goal in the Serbian top flight, and it was some goal as well.

And the list goes on.

There's a reason why he's been likened to Lionel Messi back in his home country. He's extremely highly rated and someone who absolutely has the potential to get to the very top of the game.

This season alone he's averaging a goal or assist 0.94 per 90. That's the level of an elite superstar. It's important to note his sample size is small so far, but it does warrant excitement.

As for his rivalry with Yamal, it's time for round two in the Champions League as Crvena Zvezda take on Barcelona in Belgrade on Wednesday night.

Speaking ahead of the game, Maksimovic relished the opportunity to take on the Barcelona teenage star.

“Tomorrow I will go out and show Lamine Yamal that I’m better than him. I also plan to exchange jerseys after, great player, ” Maksimovic said in a press conference speaking to reporters ahead of the game [Forbes].

And Liverpool (as well as Serbs across the world) will hope he is proven right. Based on what I have seen, I know he is speaking the truth.