Hmmm, they look a little bit too old to be playing in our youth teams in my opinion.
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Well one of them is in our first team and the other one is 13 years old.
serious question for all and especially @Sweeting
i get we need to go beyond to just keep up with the Jonesâ when it comes to genuine youth talent, and this kid is very highly rated âŠ
but having a SM released about him doing preseason ball work?..is that beneficial to the player and/or the club?
and i get it might not be an official account, but the footage was taken on club property ( i assume)
or am i reading this wrong and hes doing extra training with an external accademy and its them selling themselves?
all seems a bit too early for me, i know we cant go back to the days of hearing about them the day they get promoted to the first team on game day⊠but this is next level?
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In this instance that is not filmed on club property. The footage is coming from Kris Owensâ account (the coach working with him). Heâs a former academy player turned private coach who does 1v1 coaching etc. Basically this is an advert for his business and heâs using the footage with Abe for creditability. Footage is then reposted by Abe.
Instagram is awash with it thesedays. I follow a lot of players on instagram and theyâre basically all posting footage of their private training sessions now, so I think this is basically the new norm.
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Edit
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Just seen a Finn Inglethorpe at that level is that a certain son of a academy director?
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Yes it is
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https://x.com/FabrizioRomano/status/2074180226813235631
I just checked; heâs a CB.
https://www.thisisanfield.com/2025/12/liverpool-sign-dara-jikiemi-celtic/
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I actually thought he signed for us last season, feels like ages weâve been linked with him
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Calvin Ramsay starting pre-season with the U21âsâŠ
Poor man management that, Slot⊠oh, Iraola out!
@Sweeting do you know who this is? Hard to seeâŠ
Yeah tough to make out. I donât recognise the hairstyle - my first reaction would be that itâs either LaâMore Lee Forrester or Isaiah Garin but he looks quite skinny so may be a U16/U15 who Iâm not very familiar with yet.
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This is Liverpool U16 player Lewis John-Charles, a right-back. A good experience to be amongst the group overall, I am told he is doing work experience and helping out at the academy. A good player.
Liverpool U16 resumed training this evening.
According to Lewis Bower
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Yeah there you go, not someone Iâm familiar with. Heard the name but nothing else.
Below is a structured write-up based on Lewis Bowerâs reporting and observations.
Liverpool Academy: The Next Wave Taking Shape
Liverpoolâs academy enters the 2025/26 season at an important point in its development cycle. The pathway to the senior side remains central to the clubâs strategy, but expectations around the current group should be measured. According to academy observer Lewis Bower, it may be unrealistic to expect another young player to establish himself immediately through 20 or more first-team appearances. Instead, the coming season is likely to be defined by selective opportunities, continued development and the gradual emergence of Liverpoolâs next group of prospects.
That does not indicate a shortage of talent. Rather, many of the academyâs most promising players remain at an early stage of their development. A handful may receive first-team exposure, while others will benefit from another full season at youth level or through carefully chosen loan moves.
First-team opportunities
Will Wright appears to have one of the strongest chances of receiving senior involvement, while 15-year-old Josh Abe could make one or two first-team appearances if his development continues at its current rate. Abe is already training above his age group, having joined Liverpoolâs under-21 sessions alongside fellow 15-year-old Luca Eden.
Jayden Danns is now fully fit, giving Liverpool another established academy option, although the composition of the senior and under-21 squads may affect how opportunities are distributed. Harvey Elliott, Jérémy Jacquet and several players expected to leave on loan have also been involved, creating a particularly large training group.
Depending on those departures, further opportunities could open for players such as Murray-Holme, Lee-Forrester and Yeguo before the end of the season. Nduwke is among those who could potentially continue his development on loan.
The expectation, however, is not that one academy player will necessarily become an immediate first-team regular. A more realistic outcome would be a number of young players receiving limited exposure while continuing to build the physical, tactical and technical foundations required for senior football.
Liverpoolâs priority: retaining Josh Abe
Liverpoolâs principal academy objective during the summer was to retain Josh Abe. The club believes he has the potential to make a significant long-term impact and views him as one of the leading talents in his age group.
The effort to keep Abe reflects Liverpoolâs selective approach to academy recruitment and retention. Rather than accumulating large numbers of young players, the club identifies individuals it believes possess genuine first-team potential. Liverpool then conducts extensive background work and presents a detailed development plan to the player and his family.
Not every recruitment attempt will succeed, particularly given the intense competition for elite youth talent. However, the process demonstrates the importance Liverpool places on identifying players who could eventually bridge the gap between the academy and the senior squad.
An aggressive recruitment strategy
The academy market has become increasingly active, with transfers and scholarship decisions creating a domino effect across leading clubs.
Liverpool have been particularly ambitious at under-14 level. The club has pursued two England youth internationals who have already made under-18 appearances, as well as a highly regarded centre-back from the Midlands. A fourth player was also considered and may be revisited at a later stage.
This recruitment strategy underlines the clubâs willingness to act early. Liverpool are targeting players who have already demonstrated an ability to compete above their age group, but the approach remains selective. The objective is not simply to strengthen youth teams; it is to acquire individuals who may eventually possess the qualities required for first-team football.
Luca Eden: an outstanding midfield prospect
Among the younger players already at Liverpool, Luca Eden is emerging as one of the academyâs most compelling talents.
Eden is regarded as one of the best number eights in the country within his age group. His performances have attracted strong praise from scouts, agents and other figures within academy football, with a broad consensus that he has the capacity to progress to a very high level.
His qualities are particularly evident when he carries the ball. Eden combines aggression with long, powerful strides and a high degree of technical comfort. He is also considered a leader, an important characteristic for a central midfielder expected to influence games both in and out of possession.
There have naturally been fluctuations in his performances while playing under-18 football as an under-15 player. That inconsistency is neither unusual nor concerning. Competing against older and more physically developed opponents exposes young players to challenges that they would rarely encounter within their own age group.
When Eden drops back to his natural age level, he is capable of dominating matches. His experience of playing up should therefore accelerate his development, even when individual or collective performances at under-18 level are uneven.
Liverpool may soon face a challenge in retaining him. A player of Edenâs quality will inevitably attract attention from other leading academies, making the following summer another potentially significant period for the club.
The prospects beneath the headline names
The most visible indicators of academy progress are first-team appearances and invitations to train with the senior squad. Rio Ngumoha and Trey Nyoni have become prominent examples of Liverpoolâs pathway, while Kornel Misciur and Kieran Morrison have also recently featured for the first team.
However, the academyâs health cannot be assessed solely through its most recognisable players. Beneath every breakthrough prospect is another group attempting to become the next name to move into first-team consideration.
Liverpoolâs new scholarship intake adds another layer to that process. Some players will have productive seasons without becoming immediate senior candidates, while others may develop more rapidly than anticipated.
Any list of prospects must therefore be treated as a snapshot rather than a definitive ranking. The inclusion of a player does not mean he is certain to reach Liverpoolâs first team, just as an omission should not be interpreted negatively. Players such as Ngumoha, Nyoni and under-18 forward Joe Bradshaw are already relatively well known and therefore sit outside the category of less-established names to monitor.
There will also be players whose reputations within scouting circles exceed their current public profiles. Evaluating academy football remains inherently uncertain: development is rarely linear, and physical growth, opportunity, confidence and coaching can all alter a playerâs trajectory.
Maintaining the bridge to the first team
Arne Slotâs successful start at Liverpool has been accompanied by a selective approach to academy integration. The emergence of Ngumoha and Nyoni shows that the route into the senior squad remains open, but players must demonstrate that they are ready for the tactical and physical demands of first-team football.
That bridge remains essential. Liverpoolâs academy is expected not merely to produce successful youth sides, but to develop players capable of supporting the senior team or building substantial professional careers elsewhere.
The 2025/26 season may not produce an academy graduate who immediately records 20 senior appearances. It could instead prove significant for subtler reasons: Abe receiving his first opportunities, Eden consolidating his status as an elite midfield prospect, loan players gaining senior experience and several less familiar names moving closer to first-team consideration.
For Liverpool, this is the natural rhythm of academy development. Established prospects graduate, others depart on loan, and the next group begins to emerge beneath them. The names may change, but the objective remains constant: to identify, recruit and develop players capable of taking the difficult final step from youth football to the Liverpool first team.
Source: reporting and academy observations published by Lewis Bower.
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It feels like this is a year out of date 
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