FIVE Liverpool wonderkids could leave on loan

Liverpool’s youth and academy teams continue to turn out high-quality talent.

Ready-made first-team solutions like Conor Bradley and Jarell Quansah have earned their place in Arne Slot’s squad while others - such as Bobby Clark - are sold on at big profits.

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A crucial part in any player’s development is a successful loan. Although Bradley and Quansah are homegrown, they each have enjoyed loan spells away from the club.

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Putting prospects into men’s football as soon as possible is a big step and an indicator to staff and coaches whether these players have got the mettle to handle the challenges.

This season we have seen Ben Doak, Stefan Bajcetic and Lewis Koumas among the cohort sent out on loan. Some players have fared successfully - such as Luca Stephenson - while it’s been a campaign to forget for others like Calvin Ramsay and Calum Scanlon.

Liverpool won’t stop using the loan route for bridging the gap between youth and academy football and the first team. There are several youngsters on the cusp of making a first-team breakthrough under Arne Slot who could end up out on loan next season.

Here we take a look at five of the most promising.

TRENT KONE-DOHERTY

The Derry-born winger has already played for the first team - appearing in the ill-fated FA Cup defeat to Plymouth earlier this year. He’s also featured on the bench for a Champions League game against PSV.

Those are valuable first-team experiences and the Irish under-21 international would probably benefit from more senior football at this stage than more Premier League 2 games.

The 18-year-old was a star of Liverpool’s UEFA Youth League campaign and has pace, quality and finishing ability in abundance. A season-long loan in the Championship - like fellow prospect Ben Doak - could be the making of Kone-Doherty.

KIERAN YUSUF MORRISON

The 18-year-old has already spent some time training with Arne Slot’s first-team squad and is reported to have caught the head coach’s eye.

An attacking midfielder or winger, Northern Ireland youth international Morrison has appeared on the bench for the seniors this season too. The left-footer was part of the travelling squad for the Champions League defeat to PSV in January.

A few weeks back it was reported that Morrison could be SOLD by Liverpool this summer in an effort to generate transfer funds. Given the promise he’s shown at PL2 level this season however, he is deserving of a chance to prove himself.

A loan spell in the Championship - or even overseas - could be the making of him.

JAMES MCCONNELL

Liverpool fielded loan offers for midfielder James McConnell in January but Arne Slot was happy to turn down the interest being shown.

He has fielded the 20-year-old on four occasions in the first team - in the Champions League, FA Cup and EFL Cup - and looks to have been impressed by what the former Sunderland man can offer.

McConnell has played in his preferred central midfield position as well as right-back for the seniors this season, capitalising on his breakthrough last year when he won the EFL Cup.

It’s going to be tough to get first-team minutes in midfield - as shown by the experiences of Tyler Morton - and so a season of senior football further down the pyramid might be the ideal next step.

TREY NYONI

There are few players in the Liverpool academy system generating as much excitement as Trey Nyoni.

Signed in 2023 as a 16-year-old from Leicester, the England youngster moved quickly through the age ranks and even featured in the first team for Jurgen Klopp.

He is Liverpool’s youngest-ever player in European competition and looks set for a healthy career at the top level.

Rather than getting caught in a development gap between age-group football and a lack of action for the first team, the best thing could be a loan this summer after turning down several loan bids in January.

RIO NGUMOHA

Ngumoha caused a sensation in swapping Chelsea for Liverpool last summer and is widely seen as the most promising prospect in his age group in the country.

Already a fully-fledged senior Liverpool player, the 16-year-old has played FA Cup football this season for Arne Slot and has been a regular in the first-team training setup too.

What comes next?

If Liverpool believe in him then he might well be promoted to the first team on a full-time basis next term - especially if Luis Diaz leaves.

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More likely however is a season’s worth of senior football elsewhere on loan. Ngumoha is heading right for the very top and, loan or not, it’s only a matter of time before we see him doing his thing on a regular basis at Anfield.