Bristol City's Alex Scott has been crowned as the Championship Young Player of the Season - as Liverpool continue to monitor the progress of the teenager.
Scott was shortlisted for the award, which lists Jude Bellingham and Gareth Bale as its previous winners, alongside Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney and Amad Diallo of Sunderland.
And, after shining for the Robins under manager Nigel Pearson this season, the 19-year-old became the latest second-tier rookie to add his name to an illustrious list when presented with the award at a ceremony in London on Sunday evening.
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Scott's accolade could well initiate further discussions at Liverpool, who are one of a number of Premier League clubs keeping an eye on the midfielder, who has earned six caps for England's under-20s.
The Reds are targeting a significant overhaul to their engine room during the off-season, with the club's transfer chiefs preferring to pause their pursuit of the England and Borussia Dortmund sensation, Bellingham, in favour of a more rational approach to the address flaws that have stifled both their Premier League and Champions League campaigns this term.
Having made 38 starts for Bristol City this season, Scott has also reportedly caught the attention of Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United. However, it is expected that the Ashton Gate outfit will demand a fee in the region of £25m for their most prized asset, who has more than two years remaining on his current deal.
Speaking last month, Robins boss Pearson insisted it would take "one hell of a bid" for the Championship outfit to approve Scott's departure in the upcoming transfer window.
"Alex Scott for instance as a point of conversation, every player has a price," said Pearson, in conversation with Bristol Live. "It will have to be one hell of a bid for him to go. I can assure you that Steve (Lansdown, the Bristol City majority shareholder) doesn't want to sell players for the sake of it. It's not about that.
"I think Alex Scott's had two really good Championship seasons for us which is remarkable to say he's only 19 and he's been one of our most successful and consistent players but for somebody to get him away from here is going to cost a fortune so we're not going to undersell ourselves at all. And that's why it's important to get young players on long contracts.
"If we lose our players, we'll only lose them if it means we can facilitate the growth of our squad. Managers lose their jobs because you don't win enough games and you aren't successful enough. If you want to be a success and want to be a team that is challenging for promotion then you have to have a good enough squad. You can't have your cake and eat it so that's life."
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