It hurt to reject Liverpool, but Nordsjaelland was best move for me - NXGN star Schjelderup

Norwegian wonderkid Andreas Schjelderup has revealed the "hurt" he felt when he rejected a move to Liverpool, but insists he made the right decision to instead join FC Nordsjaelland having broken into the first team in Denmark.

The 17-year-old playmaker, who this week was named on the NXGN 2022 list of the 50 best teenage footballers in the world, had trials at a number of top European clubs before joining Nordsjaelland from Bodo/Glimt in 2020.

It is a move that has certainly paid off, with Schjelderup having made 36 first-team appearances already, marking him out as one of the most experienced players of his age in Europe.

"Of course, it was a bit hard (turning down Liverpool), because when you grow up, you watch the big names and then you hear that they want you, so your head starts to spin," Schjelderup, who also had trials at Bayern Munich, Juventus and Ajax, told GOAL.

"But I got a lot of help from my father and agents, who helped me make the right decision.

"It hurt a little bit for me and my dad in our hearts (not to join Liverpool), but the move here was instead of going to an academy at Under-19 or Under-17 level.

"It felt like this step in the ocean was the right one for me. I was in the Under-19s team when I got started, but I knew when I was ready that I could take a step up to the first team.

"But at the club, they said they didn’t expect me to get there this quick! I planned to do it sooner than they thought, and my plan worked.

"Of course, maybe I can go to a big team in the future. In the long run, for me, this was the best step. When I am ready, I will take the next step."

An attacking midfielder whose best assets are his dribbling and passing ability, Schjelderup has been likened to Eden Hazard and Jack