Liverpool fielded our youngest team of the Premier League era this afternoon, with Jurgen Klopp’s much-changed side beaten 3-1 by Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium.
Andre Ayew scored twice either side of Jack Cork’s long-range strike to render a second league goal of 2016 for substitute Christian Benteke irrelevant come full time in Wales.
With an average age of 23, this was little more than a learning curve for the six players aged 22 or under who started, as several were rested with Villarreal on Thursday in mind.
So what did we learn about those youngsters? Here we rate how they performed against the Swans…
SEE MORE: Liverpool 1-3 Swansea: Match highlights from game Klopp admits “we deserved to lose”
Danny Ward (22)
Cannot be blamed for any of the goals. At first glance it looked as though he could have done better for the third, but he had a host of bodies blocking his view. One great save from Gylfi Sigurdsson. – 6/10
Brad Smith (22)
Made it difficult for himself with an early yellow card. Could not get close enough to Wayne Routledge after that, although his second booking and subsequent sending off for a high foot was harsh. – 5/10
Kevin Stewart (22)
The promising anchorman was initially one of our better players, but he had little support from the rest of the Liverpool midfield. Finished the game at right-back, which didn’t do him any favours. – 6/10
Pedro Chirivella (18)
On his league debut, the Spaniard really struggled with the pace and physicality of the game and was hooked at half time. That does not mean that he is a write off, just that he has a lot to learn. – 4/10
Jordon Ibe (20)
An excellent talent who is short of confidence. As he did against Bournemouth a couple of weeks ago, Ibe played off the left, but barely had a kick. When he did, he lacked the conviction to beat his man. – 5/10
Sheyi Ojo (18)
The shining light of our six kids today, and perhaps in general. Ojo did not have a huge influence on the game, but there were flashes of his potential that excited us, and that is what stood out today. – 7/10
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