With all the hype surrounding the three Academy players who’ve broken through this season, many have forgotten about the youngster who most impressed in 2015/16…
The rise of Ben Woodburn, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ovie Ejaria has been breathtaking, but Sheyi Ojo definitely deserves to be spoken about in the same breath as his teenage team-mates.
The winger has been crocked for the entirety of this season, but played the full 90 for Liverpool-U23s a few days ago and registered an assist to boot.
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According to Ojo, Jurgen Klopp has specifically told him that once he gets fit, he’ll be given the chance to show he’s good enough for Liverpool’s first-team.
He told the ECHO: “[Klopp] has mentioned to me that he wants to give me an opportunity which is nice.
“I’m grateful for that because as a young player you don’t get many opportunities at a massive club like Liverpool.
“So I have to knuckle down, keep working hard and get as many minutes as I can with the reserves and try and prove to the manager that I’m ready. Hopefully I’ll get my opportunity soon.”
Liverpool have only Sadio Mane as a natural wing-forward option in the first-team squad, with the likes of Coutinho, Roberto Firmino and Gini Wijnaldum all more comfortable cutting in and doing their work from central positions. With the Senegalese absent at the AFCON in January, it may give a hopefully fully fit Ojo the chance he’s been promised.
The teenager can play on the left or right and is known for his pace, physicality and trickery.
We’ve been linked with a number of wide attackers for the January transfer window, but it may turn out that in Ojo, Mane’s backup is already at the club.