Caoimhin Kelleher must’ve been pinching himself last night as Jurgen Klopp handed him his Champions League debut in Liverpool’s win over Ajax.
The 22-year-old had only ever made four first-team appearances for the Reds before last night’s victory over the Dutch giants.
However, after some unconvincing displays from Adrian in Alisson’s absence, Klopp placed his trust in the academy graduate who had never graced European football before.
Amazingly, the Irishman was rated as the best player on the pitch by SofaScore, having made some wonderful saves to preserve his and Liverpool’s clean sheet.
After full-time, Klopp raced towards his No.62 to give him one of his trademark bear hugs. Luckily, a photographer captured the moment, which we presume Kelleher will treasure forever.
You can see the image below.
Klopp’s decision to name Adrian on the bench and play a hugely inexperienced youngster instead provides question marks over the Spaniard’s role at Anfield.
Has the former West Ham glovesman now been demoted to third-choice permanently?
It will be interesting to see if this was a one-off from Klopp, or if the German views the Cork-born shot-stopper as Alisson’s deputy.
One thing’s for certain. It would be harsh to demote Kelleher – who earns £15,385-a-week – back to third-choice after such a solid display.
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