In recent years, Liverpool have focused on signing promising players at a young age and developing them into stars of the future and a prime example of this transfer policy adopted by Liverpool is Philippe Coutinho. The little magician was signed for just £8.5m from Inter Milan and has now turned into one of the best players in the Premier League. Another example of Liverpool’s focus on young talent is Raheem Sterling. The Englishman arrived at Liverpool when he was 16 from QPR for just £600,000 and was later sold by the Merseyside club for £44m with another £5m in add-ons.
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The focus on developing young players and integrating them into the first team is a vital part of Liverpool’s future and for this purpose; they have a manager who is renowned for developing budding talents. Jurgen Klopp oversaw the rise to stardom of players like Robert Lewandowski, Mario Gotze, Ilkay Gundogan and Mats Hummels among many others and this is proof that the future of Liverpool’s talented youngsters is in good hands.
In an interview, Klopp promised that he will offer a chance for the academy players to stake their claim in the first team before looking elsewhere for reinforcements. So here are seven players aged 21 and below who are earmarked for a bright future.
Allan Rodrigues de Souza
Age: 20
Nationality: Brazil
Position: Central midfield
Liverpool have a thing for talented Brazilian players and young Allan is the fourth Selecao player in the squad after Lucas Leiva, Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino. Allan’s best position is in central midfield from where he can pull the strings as he has excellent vision, tenacity and ball-winning abilities. On top of that, he has a good left-foot with which he can unleash a powerful shot from distance.
The Reds signed Allan for just £500,000 in the summer of 2015 but had to loan the player out as he was not eligible to get a work permit. He joined Finnish club SJK on loan for the first half of 2015-6 season and scored on his debut for after coming off the bench and in the process helped his team get a 1-1 draw. He finished the season with two goals and won the league title with SJK.
Allan spent the second half of the 2015-16 season on loan with Belgian club Sint-Truiden and at the end of the loan spell, he returned to Liverpool for preseason but had to go out on loan again due to work permit issues. This time, Jurgen Klopp used his connections in Bundesliga and recommended the player to Hertha Berlin coach Pal Dardai.
The teenager made his debut for Hertha as a starter in a 2-0 defeat to Bayern Munich where he was partly at fault for one of the goals his side conceded, but he was still one of the better players for Hertha on the night. He started seven Bundesliga games and made seven further appearances as a substitute for 5th placed Hertha Berlin. He could play on loan at Hertha for another season as he is still not eligible for a work permit in England. If Hertha qualify for the Europa League next season, then Allan could be playing a lot more than he did in this season.
Ovie Ejaria
Age: 19
Nationality: England
Position: Midfield
Ovie Ejaria is an English player born to Nigerian parents. The youngster grew up supporting Arsenal for whom he played for nine years at the academy level before signing for Liverpool in 2014.
Ejaria was thrust into the limelight during the preseason ahead of the 2016/17. The youngster was largely unknown to most fans but caught the eye of all the fans in a match against Tranmere Rovers. His excellent performance in the early stages of preseason urged Klopp to give the player more chances and he was rewarded with a place on the bench for Liverpool’s Premier League game against Chelsea. However, he didn’t make his official Liverpool debut on the night. Days later, in a league cup match against Derby County, Ejaria made his Liverpool debut as a substitute for Roberto Firmino.
Ejaria is a player with a great engine and an eye for a pass. His idol is Andres Iniesta and the Liverpool player he admires the most is Philippe Coutinho. If Ejaria can pick up some of the best traits of Iniesta and Coutinho, then Liverpool will have an amazing player at their disposal.
Joe Gomez
Age: 20
Nationality: England
Position: Defence
When Liverpool signed a relatively unknown teenage defender from Charlton Athletic for £3.5m in 2015, questions were raised by fans as an inexperienced defender was far from what Liverpool needed at that time. However, an injury to Alberto Moreno during preseason opened up a chance for other players to get into the first team and it was the new signing who grabbed the opportunity.
Gomez is a right footed player whose preferred position is in the heart of the defence but when his team needed a left-back, the youngster stepped up and played in an unfamiliar role to good effect. His immediate impact with the team surprised the fans and soon he had dismissed questions on why Liverpool signed him.
The youngster is comfortable on the ball, is an excellent reader of the game and can play across the backline making him a very valuable player. He has shown maturity beyond his age whenever he has played and did not let the occasion get to him. His excellent start to life at Liverpool was short lived as an ACL injury ruled him out of action for over a year.
He is now back in full training with the squad and Klopp will be keeping an eye on him and it is said that the German is already as a massive fan of the young English defender.
Marko Grujic
Age: 21
Nationality: Serbia
Position: Central Midfield
Marko Grujic was Jurgen Klopp’s first signing as Liverpool manager. The Reds signed the coveted central midfielder from Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade after beating off interest from a host of top European clubs. In fact, it took some personal intervention from Klopp and his assistant Zeljko Buvac to bring the Serbain to Anfield.
Although Liverpool signed Grujic in January 2016, he was loaned back to Red Star Belgrade till the end of the 2015-16 season. He played a big part in his club’s undefeated league winning campaign with 6 goals and 7 assists and was voted into the SuperLiga team of the Year.
He made his first appearance for Liverpool in a pre-season friendly against Fleetwood Town and scored the first of five goals for Liverpool in the game. Later on, he scored another goal in a friendly against Huddersfield Town before finishing the preseason with a brilliant headed goal against Barcelona.
Grujic made his official debut as a substitute for Adam Lallana in a league defeat to Burnley. He made his first start in a 3-0 win over Derby County in the League Cup. Injuries limited his playing time severely in his debut season with Liverpool, but he has been refreshing to watch whenever he has got a chance.
The Serbian is a box to box midfielder with ball playing abilities and an eye for goal. It is said that he asked the club not to loan him out this season as he wanted to progress under Klopp even if it meant lesser playing time. In a recent interview, Grujic admitted that he needs to improve the defensive side of his game and is working hard on it. As a part of the process, he is bulking up in the gym.
The youngster was a key member of the Serbia team that lifted the U-20 World Cup in 2015 by beating Brazil in the final. He was also one of the nominees for the Golden Boy award 2016.
Rhian Brewster
Age: 17
Nationality: England
Position: Striker
Liverpool signed Rhian Brewster from Chelsea in 2015 on the recommendation of the former U23 coach, Michael Beale, who worked with Brewster during their time together at the club. Based on the signs so far, Liverpool will have to do more than thank Beale for finding this gem.
The teenager is a quick and agile forward who can drift into vacant spaces and create problems for the opposition defence. He is also a very good poacher in the box.
The year 2016 has been a big one in the youngster's career as he was fast tracked from the U18 level to the U23 level. His quick progress didn’t go unnoticed by Klopp as the German called the player to the first team for a behind-closed-doors friendly against Bradford in October 2016. The following month, in a similar game against Accrington Stanley, Brewster scored a hat-trick.
Brewster was invited to train with the first team in late April due to injuries to first team players like Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge. He impressed Jurgen Klopp so much that he was named on the bench for a Premier League game against Crystal Palace where he had the chance to become the first player born in the 2000s to play in the Premier League. However, he didn't make his debut as Liverpool slipped to a 2-1 defeat.
The 17-year-old still has a long way to go before he breaks into the first team but the rate of his progress so far for his age indicates that he could be a first-team player sooner than expected.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Age: 18
Nationality: England
Position: Right-back/Central midfield
Trent has been with the Liverpool academy since he was six. The youngster has represented the club at various levels. He is a versatile player capable of playing in midfield or as a right-back and it is believed that he will establish himself in the first team in the latter role. Arnold is quick, strong and has an eye for a pass and these are excellent traits for a full back. He is blessed with tremendous energy and can drive the team forward. He was the captain of Liverpool’s U-16 side which also shows his leadership skills.
The youngster first featured for the first team in a preseason friendly against Swindon Town back in 2014-15 when he was just 16 years old. Liverpool’s only right-back in the first team is Nathaniel Clyne and considering Arnold’s form with the U-23 side, it was only a matter of time before he played for the first team. He made his first team debut as a starter in a 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur in a League Cup match and was included in the EFL Cup team of the round along with his teammate Daniel Sturridge.
In the next round of the competition, he started against Leeds and interestingly, when Liverpool played Leeds in the same competition back in 2009, Alexander-Arnold was the mascot alongside Jamie Carragher. He marked the occasion by providing a brilliant assist for Origi’s goal which finally broke the deadlock and he was also named the Man of the Match.
He made his Premier League debut in January 2017 as a starter against Liverpool’s arch-rivals, Manchester United, at Old Trafford due to an injury to Nathaniel Clyne. The teenager was unperturbed by the magnitude of the occasion and did very well to keep the dangerous Anthony Martial at bay throughout the game. He was also named Liverpool’s young player of the season for 2016/17 and it was a fitting reward for his breakthrough season.
Trent has clearly impressed Jurgen Klopp this season and is now a regular member of the matchday squads and is often given opportunities of the bench. His words from an interview after breaking through to the first team is one that should delight the Liverpool fans.
“I’ve achieved my goals, but not my dream yet. The dream is to captain Liverpool. There will be goals to achieve along the way, but until I captain Liverpool I will not be satisfied.” – Trent Alxeander-Arnold
Ben Woodburn
Age: 17
Nationality: Wales
Position: Forward
Liverpool’s teenage sensation, Benjamin Woodburn, gained media attention during the pre-season of 2016-17 when the then 16-year-old striker scored a goal each against Fleetwood Town and Wigan Athletic.
Although Woodburn is a forward, his playing style has drawn comparisons with compatriot and Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey. Versatility is one of Woodburn’s strongest suits as he is capable of playing anywhere across the front three or as an attacking midfielder.
Following Woodburn’s excellent show in preseason, Klopp said that Woodburn is a natural offensive player. The youngster has been one of the stars for Liverpool’s U23 squad this season and was named the academy player of the season for 2016/17 by beating the Harry Wilson and Rhian Brewster to the award.
Woodburn made his Liverpool debut as a late substitute against Sunderland in the Premier League. Days later, he came on as a substitute against Leeds United in the EFL Cup and scored Liverpool’s second of the night. In the process, he became the youngest ever goal scorer for Liverpool by beating Michael Owen’s long-standing record. He has made the first team bench several times this season and finally got his first Premier League start away to Stoke City in a 2-1 win.
