Forward ready to join Liverpool first-team

Liverpool's forward options are wearing thin right now.

Even after signing Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike in the summer, Arne Slot doesn't have the depth he would like in the forward department right now.

Especially with the former injured and there still being an unclear timeline on when he would return. It means that at this moment in time the only natural forward fit enough to play in this Liverpool squad is Ekitike.

Federico Chiesa can play there, but he's more of a second-forward or a winger. Florian Wirtz has been used there, too. But that is not his position.

At a time like this, most Liverpool head coaches would call on their academy.

However, Liverpool can't even do that at the moment.

Jayden Danns, who may be the back-up in a situation like this is out injured and it's unlikely he's going to play for Liverpool until the end of the year.

Another young forward out injured is Will Wright. He has some first-team experience having made his debut in a friendly against Athletic Bilbao.

However, again he's out injured and he's not expected to return to action until later this month, or possibly as late as December.

There is another forward, less spoken about, who could be ready to come in and join the first-team.

At a time of crisis, the best players always step-up and make their moments count. This is exactly what Keyrol Figueroa has done at U21 level.

After having a great pre-season with new head coach Rob Page, Figueroa found himself on the bench with the U21s at the start of the season with Wright and Danns preferred ahead of him in the pecking order.

However, since both have been injured and ruled out, Figueroa has come into the team and he's made his moments count.

He scored a hat-trick in the mini-derby against Everton and then followed that up with a brace against Middlesbrough.

It means he now has seven goals in eight games in the Premier League 2 for the club's U21 side and he's now one of the top-scorers in the league.

In total he's averaging a goal every 66 minutes in the competition which is a really impressive return.

Only 19-years-old, Figueroa has been a highly rated prospect for a while. He made his debut as a 15-year-old for the U18s and he's been unlucky with injuries and opportunities over the last few years.

But now, he's taking his chances, and he's showing the kind of form that makes him ready to join and be called up to Slot's first team.

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