“I’m pretty sure…” – John Aldridge makes Lewis Koumas prediction after impressing v Man City

John Aldridge praised the performance of Lewis Koumas in Liverpool’s defeat to Manchester City on Sunday and believes that the young striker could have a lengthy career at Anfield.

With Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo all out injured, the 21-year-old was handed his first Premier League start for the eagerly anticipated fixture against Enzo Maresca’s side.

The youngster wasn’t able to make the most of a one-on-one opportunity against Gianluigi Donnarumma early in the second half, but he again underlined his reputation as a relentless pressing machine as he badgered the visitors’ defence throughout his time on the pitch.

Aldridge praises Koumas’ performance v Man City

In his latest column for the Liverpool Echo, Aldridge praised Koumas’ performance against Man City and lauded the Welshman’s indefatigable attitude.

The former Reds striker wrote: ‘Lewis Koumas is a raw talent. I’m pretty sure that he’ll play for Liverpool for a long time. In which position I don’t know, but he’s got the heart and the spirit of a Liverpool fan – the heart of a Kopite – and he’s got ability.

‘At the moment, it’s hard to go in against Man City. That team has got £100m players and when they bring someone off the bench, they’re replacing them with another £100m player.

‘Koumas is starting his career in football, but he’s acquitted himself well. He just hit that one chance too well. If he’d mis-hit it slightly, it would have gone either side of the goalkeeper. It was a good strike and a decent save. If that goes in it’s a different game, but he got in there early and he did well.’

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Koumas deserves praise for his performance on Sunday

Amid all the attention on Man City’s egregious breaching of financial regulations and the ludicrously harsh (and game-changing) dismissal of Ryan Gravenberch, the performance of the young Liverpool striker on Sunday went largely overlooked.

Even with Andoni Iraola’s hand forced by numerous injuries, it was still a resounding vote of confidence in Koumas to give him a first Premier League start in such a powderkeg of a fixture, and he didn’t disappoint.

He made life difficult for Marc Guehi at times with his relentless work rate and, as Ian Doyle noted for the Liverpool Echo, ‘wasn’t given a lot of protection’ by referee Chris Kavanagh on the day.

The only blemish for the 21-year-old was the chance that he spurned shortly after half-time, one that a more experienced and finessed striker might’ve finished to the net, but the experience of yesterday will very much stand to the Wales international.

Breaking to the Reds’ starting XI in the long-term could be a tough task with Isak and Ekitike in the squad, but Koumas looks increasingly as though he belongs at first-team level at Anfield, and his performance was a big positive for LFC from a difficult day overall for the Merseysiders.