Momo Sissoko and I’m not even willing to hear the counter-arguments!
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Ki-Jana Hoever set to sign for Wolves with a fee of around £10m agreed.
Came out of nowhere this one but he likely saw no true way into the first team at CB and his route through at RB was blocked by Alexander-Arnold and Williams.
Good price for someone who has played four times in all competitions for us, especially since we paid a nominal fee of something like £90k when we bought him from Ajax.
May even be a PL players this season at Wolves, they’re thin at RB now that Doherty has left and you can imagine him transitioning across into their three man defence beautifully in time.
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Hope were not making another Coady mistake with this
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Is it official or just a rumour???
Letting Coady go wasn’t a mistake.
Due to the quality of our youth sides now there will be young players we sell that go on to do good things. That’s not something to worry about, quite the opposite.
Honestly, I was resigned to the fact we’d lose Hoever in a similar manner to the way we lost Camacho. At least this time we got a decent fee in return. These talented, foreign kids don’t wait around forever. If they leave their home countries at 16 to come here they’ll have no qualms moving on either.
He could be a very, very good player, there’s just no clear route through for him at the moment. A good move for all parties.
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The only mistake with Coady is we didn’t get enough money - because Rodgers - but letting him leave was absolutely the right decision.
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Coady was not a mistake. Not all players can reach this level from just training session and sitting on the bench and watching better players play.
Ki is different as he has more obvious innate ability that suggests he would need a less windy path to play at this level, but where is his opportunity with us? If we had older and more mediocre RBs you could see one, but he’s third choice there behind 2 players not much older than he is. Likewise at CB.
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Another plug for my “Man United flooding the league with their academy products” theory but it really is a measure of strong academy and a strong, dare I even say, a dominant club. I’m still disappointed that it’s Hoever because I had big expectations of him (and Camacho, now that you’ve mentioned him, but I rated Hoever much higher) but if his fee and circumstances are the yardstick, then Liverpool’s academy and youth recruitment are surely doing well.
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A bit sad because I like him as a talent.
But it’s become obvious lately that he’s hit a grey period. Confused what’s his position, Trent happening, Neco Williams happening, Billy Koumetio getting a chance in pre-season.
He also said something about our style, maybe he’s also a bit impatient as well, even if he’s 18. That’s all fine.
Still, looks like a good deal. Wolves’ style might also initially prove to be too intense for him, he wouldn’t be the first talent to fail to make an impression there. He might still need to go through a process of waiting, a loan or two, who knows. But he is stepping down a level, shorter squad, the system they play might give him a better chance long term, ideally in that RCB position in a back 3.
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Must admit to a tinge of sadness re this one. Obviously has a lot of talent but seems to have hit a " flat spot" as do many young players. Some come out the other side stronger, others just stagnate. I feel Hoever will one day become a class player but who knows.
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Great business if we get 10m for him.
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Yeah mate, same here. Always sad to see a young player leave. 
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Just kicked off against Derby, tough game as Derby are very good at this level.
Jaros
Bradley Clayton Savage Back
Cain Clarkson Woodburn
Bearne Longstaff Millar
25 mins gone, 1-1.
Liverpool dominated for the opening 20 minutes and went 1-0 up through a Jake Cain free kick.
However, Derby managed to break for the first time down the right hand side and a decent cross gave Josh Shonibare too much time and he curled it into the far post.
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Half time
Derby 2-1 Liverpool
Played well in the first half and deserved the lead but have been caught twice on the counter attack by Josh Shonibare and Jack Stretton.
In truth Derby have been comfortable since they equalised.
Correct me if I’m wrong. Our U23 squad looks rather thin without the likes of SvdB, KJH, Brewster, Elliott etc.
Most of the remaining kids are either too young or not that good.
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Yes I think that’s fair. Similar to last season really in that the players in the U23 squad (with the notable exception of Curtis Jones and Neco Williams) were not in line for the first team in any serious way.
In reality now the U23 squad is there to aid the younger players development and get them physically and mentally ready to go out on loan and experience adult football.
Generally speaking I don’t think we, as a club, have faith in the U23 system to improve players to the required standard. Some players will go straight through and just need some time - like Jones and Alexander-Arnold but most will need to eventually go on loan.
Only been watching for 20 minutes but Cain and Clarkson look the best players on the pitch as usual.
This front 3 lacks any cutting edge and the defence is not too strong. Look forward to Glatzel coming back, Elliot playing some minutes and even the likes of Stewart and Hill stepping up later in the season.
And I might agree with this way of working the “youth” system these days.
I think the U23 team/league is a strange one to have to be honest, especially for the top clubs.
The “Young Player of the Year Award” goes to someone that could have played U23 that season. For teams that are vying for the upper half of the table, if you’re 22 and not part of the 1st team setup, then you’re highly unlikely to make it with the club for the 1st team. That might go for all teams in the Premier League but definitely for the upper half.
So you use it to get younger players more experience playing against older, more physically mature, and more tactically mature players - at least in theory.
The truly promising players will be loaned or getting spot minutes by the time they are 21.
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Finished 2-1 to Derby - unlucky to lose the games after getting hit on the break a couple of times. O’Rourke missed a good chance late in the game.
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