When Milos Kerkez gave an interview to nemzeti sport in October 2022, shortly after his senior international debut for Hungary, he revealed a dream to play for “one of the top teams” in La Liga.
Back then, Kerkez was at AZ—already the sixth club of a career that began in childhood within the youth section of FK Vrbas in northern Serbia.
The Premier League wasn’t on his radar. But a spell at Bournemouth has proven to be defining, paving the way for him to join new champions Liverpool at the start of a new chapter for the Reds. With a £40 million ($54.4 million) price tag on his back and the fourth part of a record-breaking summer of spending for the club, expectations are high—not least because there is an understanding that Kerkez will replace modern Anfield legend Andrew Robertson.
Kerkez, still only 21, has always backed himself to succeed. By his own admission, the full back walked away from AC Milan—for whom he never made a first team appearance—because of a desire to play. AZ was the beneficiary and that decision has been justified by what has happened since.
When it comes to international football, Hungary was not the most outwardly obvious path for Kerkez. He was born in Serbia to Serbian parents, raised there until the age of 10 when he moved to Austria to be part of Rapid Wien’s youth academy. Kerkez had never actually lived in Hungary until he was almost 16 and joined little known Hódmezővásárhelyi. He soon moved onto Győr, a higher profile Hungarian side that gave Kerkez his professional debut in the country’s second tier.
That was the last time he lived and played in Hungary—under two years in total, then personally invited by Paolo Maldini to join Milan at 17 after impressing for Győr. But, for being Serbian-born and spending an important part of his adolescence in Austria, Kerkez feels Hungarian.
Where Kerkez was born and grew up, Vrbas, is in the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is part of Serbia, but the area originated as part of Hungary—it has also an alternate Hungarian name, Verbász—and Hungarian is one of six official languages, spoken alongside Serbian, Slovak, Romanian, Croatian and a regionalised variant of Slovak, Pannonian Rusyn.
Kerkez’s paternal grandmother was born in Hungary, which is where his direct eligibility comes from.
“Hungary always came first!” he told nemzeti sport in that aforementioned interview. “My father and my Hungarian grandmother would have wanted it, and so did I, there was no question about it.
“I decided at a very young age, at 14, that if I ever got that far in my career, I would like to play for the Hungarian national team. Not to mention the fact that Serbia has never asked me to join while Hungary did when I was 15. I am respected here, as is my family, and I will never forget that.”
Kerkez first represented Hungary at Under-17 level and progressed to the Under-21 age group, shortly before making his senior debut in a 1–0 UEFA Nations League win over Germany.
Serbia have been dismissive about some of the claims made. Kerkez’s father, Sebastian, recently suggested on a podcast that the Serbian football federation “didn’t seem too serious”, which was quickly denied by Belgrade. It was even subsequently claimed in response by one Serbian official that Kerkez specifically chose Hungary because it was an easier path to an EU passport.
Realistically, due to the nature of Kerkez’s family history, they may never have had a chance anyway.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Milos Kerkez: Why Serbia-Born Liverpool Signing Plays for Hungary.