Liverpool’s under-21 side have gone from strength to strength this season, with youth development clearly being as important to new head coach Arne Slot as it was to Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool’s reserves sit fourth in the Premier League 2 table with six wins from eight matches. This is led primarily by Trey Nyoni and Tyler Morton, who are splitting their time between the youth team and the men’s senior squad.
Notable in their absences from the side, however, are Ben Doak, Owen Beck and Lewis Koumas. All mainstays in the reserve squad last year, they are now plying their trade on loan in the Championship.
McConnell shared an update on his status via Instagram Stories yesterday, captioning an image of him playing against Luton last season “Soon back”.
It is a positive update for the 20-year-old, who was showing so much promise for the Reds last season.
McConnell’s Liverpool potential
Speaking after an under-21s victory over Stoke in February, teammate Koumas labelled McConnell ‘a very special player and very good to play with’.
Jurgen Klopp evidently thought so too, giving McConnell nine first-team appearances in all competitions last season.
This included a full 45 minutes in the Europa League against Sparta Prague, a full debut in the FA Cup against Norwich where he bagged an assist, and the entirety of extra time in the League Cup Final win over Chelsea.
As a result, there is every expectation that McConnell himself would be pushing for first-team minutes either on loan or for the Liverpool first team, similar to Nyoni and Morton.
The young midfielder can’t return from injury soon enough. Reds wait with bated breath to see what the future holds for him.
