Midfielder set to RETURN to Liverpool

A lot of change happened over the course of the summer transfer window.

On the surface of it, Richard Hughes pretty much did a perfect job. But as sporting director, he will have known his job had only begun.

The mission he is facing right now is to rebuild an entire team. He's establishing a new dynasty at Liverpool and that takes time.

On the pitch the players need to be accustomed to certain playing styles. Off the pitch, the dressing room needs time to adapt and get used to each other - as well as learn Arne Slot's methods on the training ground.

Hughes meanwhile still needs more investment and he will be looking to add more players to this squad in the coming years.

At the same time, another key area for Liverpool has been the way they have looked to develop their young players. Not only have they promoted players into the first-team but they have also utilised loan pathways to generate extra income and profit.

Over the course of the summer, that hasn't really worked out. Liverpool's loan moves so far have been unsuccessful to say the least.

Most notably, what looked like one of the most exciting moves on paper in James McConnell moving to Ajax has turned into a disaster.

McConnell has struggled for game time and hasn't really been given a chance under Johnny Heitinga. This has been down to Ajax struggling themselves and Heitinga being under pressure.

Ultimately, it saw the former Liverpool assistant lose his job. Heitinga was fired from his position earlier this month and now McConnell's future is even more uncertain.

It's unlikely that whoever the new manager is will give him the game time he needs to develop. Keeping him at Ajax is only going to stagnate his development.

So, the best possible solution may be to part ways. A bit similar to what happened when Stefan Bajcetic joined Red Bull Salzburg last season before he went on loan to Las Palmas.

This is definitely a possibility as it has been relayed by Algemeen Dagblad journalist Johan Inan covers the Amsterdam club. In a podcast as per Voetbal Primeur, Inan revealed that there is a very strong chance McConnell won't end the season with Ajax.

“Crazy. Ajax knew back in January or February that Jordan Henderson would be leaving. That gives you six months to bring in a successor. That didn’t happen,” he said.

“That guy [McConnell] is in his early twenties. And yet everyone was advocating for an experienced number six.”

“I’ll have to see if he’ll finish the season at Ajax. They’re already looking for a new number six,” Inan explained.

So, it's looking very likely that the 21-year-old midfielder will return to Liverpool before the end of the season.

This is probably the best for everyone involved.

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