Skip to content
Liverpool fast-tracked £600,000 teenager making ‘huge progress’ as Man City challenge emerges
The Liverpool senior side may have fallen considerably short this season in their attempt to retain status as nearest challengers to moneybags state-owned Manchester City in the top flight.
But there were no such issues for the under-21 side, who posted their best Premier League 2 placing in five years to finish second behind City after a strong second half to the campaign.
With a number of players also progressing through to the senior set-up, it was an encouraging season for the Reds’ U21 squad, who continue to reap the rewards of having moved alongside the first team at the AXA Training Centre more than two years ago.
READ MORE: Liverpool proven right after beating Arsenal to free transfer who turned down Man City
READ MORE: How Liverpool players are spending their holidays as Trent Alexander-Arnold joined by former team-mate
And while preparing and providing talent for Jurgen Klopp and his coaching staff remains the sole priority, that individual progress has been reflected collectively was a notable achievement in the mind of U21s coach Barry Lewtas.
“Results aren’t something we like to publicise outwardly as there are so many different things that can happen at this level over the course of a season,” he says to the ECHO. “To set any particular target would be naive.
“But as the season went on, the lads did push and wanted to finish as high as they could. They realised how they perform represents them so it was a matter of things coming together, such as them wanting to showcase their abilities and understanding collectively if they did it well then they’d all benefit from it.”
Liverpool only won one of their first seven Premier League 2 games before, in a reverse to the usual trend, they were bolstered by a number of loan players returning early in the New Year and lost only one of their final 10 matches.
“It probably gave us chance to build on what we’d done in the first half of the season,” says Lewtas. “There were certain parts of the game that were really strong but we couldn’t really piece them all together. But as the season wore on, we looked a lot more complete in our performances. We had the best defensive record in the league and then we got our attacking play right.
“Individually, Ben Doak and Harvey Blair were a real threat, our midfield were getting more bodies into the box, and it helped Layton Stewart was scoring a lot of goals as a nine.”
Doak in particular was one of the driving forces in the run to the UEFA Youth League quarter-finals, where Liverpool were beaten in controversial fashion at Sporting Lisbon after the young Scottish winger was forced off after only eight minutes with concussion.
The 17-year-old, signed for £600,000 from Celtic last summer, was quickly elevated from the U18s to the U21s where he marked his first start by scoring the winner in a 2-1 mini-derby triumph over Everton, and later featured five times for the first team.
“Ben hasn’t even been here a year and has made huge progress,” says Lewtas, whose team also reached the last eight of the Premier League International Cup before unlucky defeat to Crystal Palace. “It was important we didn’t take away what he already had as an unbelievably direct, energetic wide player, and we worked really hard with him on parts of the game we thought he could develop and enhance.
“He still has a lot of that work to do but for a young boy who has moved home, from one big club to another, there has been a lot of attention around him and he’s made his first-team debut, to have the impact he has over the course of the season has been brilliant for him.”
Two local talents also impressed. Dom Corness, the 20-year-old midfielder, skippered the side and, after signing a long-term contract in November, was named player of the season by his team-mates. And 20-year-old forward Stewart’s early-season form earned a senior bow in the League Cup against Derby County, before returning in February from subsequent injury to score in five successive Premier League 2 games.
“Layton was a little bit unfortunate to pick up an injury around January in terms of the transfer window,” says Lewtas. “He had already missed a year through injury so he is playing a bit of catch-up. But despite being out for so long, he hasn’t forgotten where the goal is. He has worked really hard behind the scenes physically and technically. He has scored different types of goals, so let’s see where that takes him next season.
“Dom has been brilliant. Last season he didn’t play as much as he had a few injuries and suspensions. He is the captain and is well respected in the dressing room and speaks well, and he is a leader. But he’s also a leader in the way we want to play, he has taken on responsibility in certain stages of a game. Dom has got us up the pitch and built and co-ordinated our attacks.”
That Manchester City claimed a third successive title to go with a fourth consecutive U18 Premier League North crown underlines their dominance and spending power at all age levels.
But change could be coming to the U21s, who reverted from an U23 side at the start of the season. At present, clubs are split between two divisions in Premier League 2 with promotion and relegation. But a new proposal – which will be voted on at the Premier League Annual General Meeting this month – could see a switch to a ‘Swiss style’ system similar to the one that will be introduced to the Champions League from 2024/25 in which all the teams are in the same league and their fixtures are decided by seedings.
One thing that won’t alter, though, is the prime aim for Lewtas and his coaching staff. “Our job is to make sure when the players are called upon, they are ready,” he says. “It’s not about second-guessing when they might be involved – it’s just about being prepared for that moment, whether it’s next season a Europa League game, Carabao Cup game, FA Cup game or Premier League game.
“We will just continue doing the work, and I’ve said time and again we are unbelievably fortunate we have a first-team coaching staff who will give the kids a go.”
READ NEXT:
