When Liverpool signed Ben Davies from Preston North End in January, few expected that the end result would be Sepp van den Berg emerging as a right wing back.
Liverpool needed centre backs at the end of the January transfer window, so they pounced to sign Davies in a cheap deal from Preston alongside Schalke’s Ozan Kabak.
Davies never made a competitive appearance for Liverpool. He couldn’t break through at Anfield and is now on loan at Championship side Sheffield United.
To get Davies in the first place, Liverpool sent youngster Van den Berg on loan to Preston as part of the deal – and that has ended up being the real positive of the move.
Van den Berg impressed on loan at Preston, so much so that they brought him back for a full season – and he is shining once again.
What’s surprising is that the Dutchman has ended up playing mostly as a right wing back for Preston, despite mostly being a centre back by trade.
Van den Berg scored his first senior goal against Morecambe last month, and then followed that up with another strike against Swansea City just days later.
The 19-year-old showed a great first touch, quick feet to evade a defender and an inch-perfect finish – attributes you don’t necessarily associate with centre backs.
Liverpool cannot have seen this coming. It had barely even been mentioned that Van den Berg would play anywhere other than centre back.
When Van den Berg comes back to Anfield, he will have proven that he can offer greater versatility than first thought – and leave Jurgen Klopp with a dilemma.
Is Van den Berg going to challenge Trent Alexander-Arnold at right back any time soon? Probably not.
Yet he could end up proving that he can push past Neco Williams in the right back pecking order, giving Klopp another option at the back.
If Van den Berg continues developing in that role, Klopp may have to pick between Van den Berg and Williams down the line – something nobody could have really seen coming.
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