Djibril Cisse says Hugo Ekitike “would’ve been crazy” to turn down a move to Liverpool this summer.
However, the former Reds striker has also warned his French compatriot that he now needs to justify his near £80million price tag at Anfield.
Liverpool finalised terms with Eintracht Frankfurt over the weekend, putting Ekitike on the brink of a deal worth an initial £69million, with a further £10million in success-based add-ons.
The 23-year-old underwent a medical in London on Tuesday and is expected to join his new teammates in Hong Kong once his signing is officially confirmed.
Cisse has compared Ekitike to his former Anfield teammate Peter Crouch and challenged the Reds’ new signing to prove why the key decision-makers at Merseyside have shown such faith in him.
Hugo Ekitike is set to become Liverpool’s seventh signing of the summer, following agreements for Jeremie Frimpong, Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, and the goalkeeping trio of Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, and Armin Pecsi.
“He would’ve been crazy not to go,” Djibril Cisse told L’Equipe.
“Now he has to perform. In his profile he is a bit of a ‘target man’, like Peter Crouch – he’s the only one in the squad.
“In Germany, he might have had more time to express himself. In England, the intensity will shock him.
“At Arsenal or Chelsea, the French really left a mark. At Liverpool, maybe some came too young or weren’t ready.
“But one day, one of us will break through and set the tone.”
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