Ian Wright has shared what he made of Jayden Danns after the Liverpool youngster came off the bench to help the Reds to Carabao Cup final glory on Sunday.
Jayden Danns went into last week still awaiting his first-team debut for Jurgen Klopp‘s side. But he came off the bench towards the end of Liverpool’s victory over Luton Town in midweek.
The 18-year-old was also one of the younger players Klopp brought off the bench at Wembley. It seemed like a huge gamble from the Reds boss, with Bobby Clark and James McConnell also coming on.
Ian Wright reacts as Jayden Danns steps up for Liverpool in Carabao Cup final
And yet, in extra-time, it was Liverpool who were pushing for the win rather than Chelsea. They got their rewards just a few minutes before penalties, with Virgil van Dijk heading home from a corner to decide the game and hand Klopp the first domestic trophy of the season.
Danns will probably be slightly disappointed that he did not score himself. But it was remarkable how he popped up in the perfect position at the right time, and did come close to breaking the deadlock.
And, speaking on Wrighty’s House, Ian Wright suggested that Danns did not look out of place at all on the big stage.
“You look at the young players that came on, even Danns, I’ve not seen too much of him. Heard his name before,” he said.
“But he came on in that final like an experienced pro the way he played, the way he held the ball, he didn’t look like he was in awe of anything. He was just in and ready to go. And that is something to do with the aura of Liverpool and what they expect from a player that can come on and ‘this is fine, this is what we’re about’. I envy them for that.”
Another player Jurgen Klopp can trust
Danns has been in fine form for the under-18s this season, scoring nine in nine in the league. And he will take a lot of confidence from how he has dealt with the step-up to the first-team.
Obviously, he is probably not going to expect a lot of minutes with so much riding on each game from now until the end of the season.
But clearly, Klopp now knows that he can rely on him to cause problems and make something of an impact.
