Daniel Cleary must wait a little longer.
Brendan Rodgers was a major fan of the young Irish defender, and before his sacking he was full of praise for the youngster ahead of Liverpool’s Europa league clash with Sion at the start of this month.
The Antrim native spoke about the the 19-year-old in glowing terms as he included him in the extended squad for the game that ended 1-1 and hinted that the Dubliner could be close to breaking through to the first team.
“Daniel is a very good player, he is going to have a very good career in the game. He is very committed,” Rodgers said. “I have seen developments in my time, as a young player, I’ve seen him improve.”
But it seems that the former Crumlin United man needs to impress his new manager. Jurgen Klopp is set to blood some younger players in tonight’s Capital One cup clash with Bournemouth but Cleary won’t feature.
According to various reports, the ex-Borussia Dortmund manager is likely to hand starts to fringe players such as Joao Carlos Teixeira, Cameron Brannagan and Connor Randall in the Anfield clash later
Connor Randall, Cameron Brannagan and Joao Carlos Teixeira all start for #LFC v Bournemouth tonight.
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 28, 2015
First team debut for Randall, first starts for both Brannagan and Teixeira. Proud night ahead for the staff at the Kirkby Academy #LFC
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 28, 2015
All three #LFC rookies have impressed Klopp with their attitude and work rate as well as their ability during training at Melwood.
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 28, 2015
The news will be a disappointment to Irish football fans who were hoping that the club’s year long search for the next Irish starlet to come through the club’s academy system was about to blossom.
The last Irish born academy player to make a first team senior debut was Richie Partridge back in 2004.
Adam Bogdan is also set to replace Simon Mignolet in goals, while Brannigan is set to start in midfield, with Teixeira in an advanced role, while Randall is likely to start at right-full back.
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