When French newspaper L’Equipe asked Jeremy Jacquet in October which elite defenders he looked up to, the response was telling.
“(Virgil) van Dijk and (Ibrahima) Konate,” he said.
Admiration for Liverpool proved to be mutual as the young Rennes centre-back earned rave reviews from the club’s scouting missions to north-west France.
As Jacquet’s reputation continued to grow, there was always going to be serious competition for his signature. Rennes made it clear to suitors that they would reluctantly agree a deal in the winter transfer window as long as they could retain his services for the rest of the season.
Chelsea appeared to be the front-runners after opening talks in January, but the landscape shifted over the weekend. With Liverpool also willing to meet Rennes’ financial demands, the France Under-21 international made it clear during negotiations with the club’s sporting director Richard Hughes that Anfield was his destination of choice.
On Monday morning, he was given the green light to fly to Manchester to undergo a medical. His contract will start on July 1 and run until the summer of 2031 with the option of a further 12 months.
Liverpool will pay £55million ($75m) plus potentially another £5m in add-ons, making Jacquet the second most expensive centre-back in the club’s history after Van Dijk.
Jeremy Jacquet has impressed for Rennes (Olivier Chassignole/AFP via Getty Images)
Speaking at a press conference ahead of Tuesday’s French Cup tie with Marseille, Rennes head coach Habib Beye described it as “the best deal we could hope for”.
He explained: “We negotiated the transfer, obtained the amount that the club looked for, we respected the player’s wish and we have him for the remainder of the season. It’s the reality of the market. We simply don’t have the means to fight.”
It’s a big fee for a 20-year-old defender with just 31 senior appearances for Rennes under his belt. However, Liverpool’s recruitment staff are convinced that it will be a shrewd long-term investment.
They view Jacquet as one of the most talented young centre-backs in Europe and there is excitement at the prospect of him eventually being paired with Giovanni Leoni. The 19-year-old Italian, who arrived from Parma in a £29m deal last summer, is recovering from the anterior cruciate ligament injury he cruelly suffered on his debut in September.
Signing Jacquet continues the club’s policy of building for the future and bringing down the average age of Arne Slot’s squad as it evolves. Out of last summer’s other new arrivals, Alexander Isak is the oldest at 26, followed by Jeremie Frimpong (25), Giorgi Mamardashvili (25), Hugo Ekitike (23), Florian Wirtz (22) and Milos Kerkez (22).
Liverpool opted not to rival Manchester City for the £20m signing of Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace in January as they felt the overall cost of the package, including high wages and bonuses, was prohibitive for a player who would have been a free agent in five months. Internally, they view the deal for Jacquet as more in keeping with their strategy, due to the youngster’s high ceiling for development.
Both the data analysis and the character references were glowing. He’s quick, strong and composed in possession with the ability to make line-breaking passes, having started off as a midfielder in Rennes’ youth ranks before being turned into a centre-back. He was part of the same acclaimed year group as Rennes’ academy graduates Desire Doue (Paris Saint-Germain), Mathys Tel (Tottenham Hotspur) and Jeanuel Belocian (Bayer Leverkusen).
Jacquet caught Liverpool’s eye at the Under-19s Euros in Northern Ireland in 2024 when he was part of the France team who were beaten by Spain in the final. He was named in UEFA’s team of the tournament and his progress has been monitored closely since.
A productive loan spell at Clermont Foot provided the platform for him to launch his senior career at Rennes. He has started 18 of their 20 Ligue One games so far this season with suspension keeping him out of the other two.
Jacquet impressed at the European under-19 Championship in 2024 (Ramsey Cardy – Sportsfile/UEFA via Getty Images)
For Jacquet, Liverpool’s plan for him proved influential in his decision. The pathway was less clear at Chelsea, given the defensive depth they already possess.
With Mamadou Sarr returning from a loan at Strasbourg and offers for Josh Acheampong being turned down, the Londoners insist they already possess two top young centre-backs and are relaxed about missing out.
From July, Jacquet will be competing for a place alongside his idol Van Dijk. Whether he gets to rub shoulders with Konate or simply replaces him is unclear. Konate is out of contract at the end of the season with no sign of an extension being agreed.
There could be further changes at centre-back because Joe Gomez, whose game time has been limited, will be down to the final year of his current deal. Van Dijk, who turns 35 in July, is also under contract until 2027.
Signing Jacquet gives Liverpool a head start for what promises to be a busy summer, but it doesn’t help in the short term given how depleted they are defensively.
Sporting director Richard Hughes explored a number of options ahead of the deadline, including trying to get Lutsharel Geertruida on loan for the rest of the season. The Dutchman was keen, having played under Slot at Feyenoord, and his versatility was viewed as an asset, as he can play right-back, centre-back or in midfield.
However, it proved too complex to pull off, because Geertruida was already on loan at Sunderland from RB Leipzig. Liverpool would have needed to pay compensation to convince Sunderland to terminate their loan arrangement, but the north-east club also needed to recruit a replacement and that was a stumbling block with the time pressures.
With Konate back from compassionate leave, Gomez set to be available for Sunday’s visit of Manchester City following a recent hip injury, and Frimpong’s groin problem not serious, Liverpool are confident they can cope between now and May.
Trying to get Jacquet on board immediately was never a goer, given Rennes’ own push for European qualification. Liverpool believe he will prove to be worth the wait.
How he plays
Assessing centre-backs has its challenges because defensive data is difficult to quantify because of the range of variables at play.
There is also a limited sample size available for Jacquet, who has played 31 senior games for Rennes and a further 24 for Ligue 2 side Clermont Foot, where he started the 2024-25 campaign on loan before being recalled.
Still, there are only three under-21 players who have amassed more minutes at centre-back than Jacquet across Europe’s top five leagues.
The defender’s frame — similar to summer signing Giovanni Leoni — makes him difficult to miss. Rennes have primarily operated in a 3-5-2 system under head coach Habib Beye. Jacquet began by featuring as the right centre-back but has transitioned into the middle centre-back in the back three.
One of the attributes that stands out immediately from the eye test is Jacquet’s aggressive and intense style of defending. He’s comfortable playing in a high line and is constantly looking to be aggressive. That is highlighted by his front-foot defending below (defined as how often a player goes hunting for defensive actions).
His role change to central centre-back this season has meant he is less on the front foot but he still wins challenges at a decent rate and is a good one-v-one defender. As the graphic above shows, last season he excelled in tackle success (75 out of 99) and loose ball recoveries (66 out of 99).
This season his “true” tackle win rate – the tackles he has won from tackles attempted, challenges lost and fouls made – of 67 per cent is 11th among the under-23 cohort of 51 players.
In this example against RC Strasbourg, the French youth international anticipated the pass into Julio Enciso and won possession back for his team midway inside the opposition half.
Taking an aggressive defensive approach runs the risk of being caught out, but Jacquet is good at defending space and also using his long frame and pace to cover the ground.
In this example against Le Havre, he was beaten to the initial pass and the striker skipped away from him. However, he was able to recover and prevent a shot.
It was a similar story against Monaco as he raced back to block Mika Biereth’s effort.
His box defending and anticipation are more positives. Against Paris Saint-Germain, he initially showed his ability to defend space by tracking Vitinha’s pass into Bradley Barcola. He held the winger up and then accelerated, passing two of his own players, to close down Lee Kang-in as he shot from Barcola’s lay-off.
Opponents have frequently targeted Liverpool with long balls this season, so any incoming centre-back has to be strong in that department. Aerially, among all centre-backs under 23 across Europe’s top five leagues, he has the third-best win rate (76 per cent).
The physicality of the Premier League, especially this season, has gone to another level, so there is no guarantee that Jacquet would immediately be as aerially dominant as he has been in France. But his presence could also make him dangerous from set pieces, something Liverpool desperately need with the team’s current lack of aerial threat.
To be a centre-back for Liverpool, you have to be as strong on the ball as off of it and Jacquet is comfortable in possession.
He is a progressive passer. His 116 so far this season are more than any other under-23 centre-back in Europe’s top five leagues. This can always be related to team style but, from a Liverpool perspective, a player showing their ability to make line-breaking passes is a positive.
As the graphic below shows, he has the confidence to punch balls into central areas.
Jacquet also has the ability to switch play to both sides of the pitch. His execution is not always solid, but it is another pass type that a Liverpool centre-back needs.
The talent and potential is obvious when watching Jacquet, but he is not the finished article. The reason Liverpool have paid as much as they have is because the raw ingredients are there for him to become a defensive force in years to come.