Ajax have secured the services of Liverpool target and Barcelona winger Isaac Cuenca on a five-month loan deal.

The 21-year-old has been linked with Liverpool and Arsenal in this transfer window. The Telegraph claims the Reds expressed an interest in bringing in the Spaniard but missed out, with Graham Hunter also mentioning the approach on the Sky Sports' coverage of deadline day.

Isaac Cuenca
fcbarcelona.com

Cuenca has yet to feature this season for Barcelona because of a knee injury he suffered during training in May. The youngster was given permission by the Catalans, earlier this week, to return to competitive action and he has now joined the Dutch giants to regain fitness and form, ahead of next season.

Ajax manager and former Barcelona defender Frank de Boer is understood to have used his Catalans connections to snap up Cuenca on a deal that will see the clubs share equal responsibility for the player's wages.

"I'm very happy with him. He's a more than welcome addition to our team. We're still competitive in three [competitions] and a player of the calibre of Cuenca is always useful. He is a very smart player and fast, he can play on the left and right wing, and besides that he's a very good player," Goal.com quoted de Boer.

Cuenca made 29 appearances in all competitions for Barcelona last season, notching three goals and six assists. The winger has stated his focus is on rebuilding his fitness and match sharpness.

"After I started to train with the group, I had a little relapse. But now I feel good, ready to play. I'm going to have minutes [to play] and test myself after so many months of being injured," Cuenca pointed out.

The La Roja U23 international arrived at Camp Nou from neighbours Espanyol in 2003, at the age of 12, and rose through the junior ranks over the years, before Pep Guardiola handed him a senior debut in 2011.