Steven Gerrard insists that the ‘fantastic’ Carney Chukwuemeka has a part to play at Aston Villa amid claims that the youngster could turn down a new contract to and Premier League rivals Liverpool, speaking to the club’s official website.
If the 18-year-old sensation cannot force his way into Aston Villa’s starting XI, then what chance does he have of featuring regularly in a Liverpool side boasting the likes of Jordan Henderson, Thiago Alcantara, Curtis Jones, James Milner and Fabinho?
Well, that’s not really the point.
The fact is that Jurgen Klopp has a terrific track record when it comes to giving youth a chance.
And with Liverpool competing on a number of different fronts, youngsters Tyler Morton, Kaide Gordon, Harvey Blair, Connor Bradley, Owen Beck and Elijah Dixon-Bonner have all featured for the first-team this season alone.
According to The Guardian, Chukwuemeka fears that similar opportunities will not come his way at Villa Park.
That is why one of the most talented teenagers in the country is expected to turn down a new contract at the Midland giants, putting the likes of Manchester City, Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Liverpool on red alert.
But, in the space of just a fortnight, new Villa boss Gerrard has already handed Chukwuemeka as many Premier League chances during the 2021/22 season as his successor Dean Smith did in three months.
Could Carney Chukwuemeka swap Aston Villa for Liverpool?
“The reason we put him on is because we believe in him and we trust him,” the former Rangers manager explains after Chukwuemeka came off the bench during Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester City.
“He’s a fantastic talent and there’s still a lot of growth and evolving for him to do. It’s important that we give him that support and we give him the environment to keep evolving in.
“But you can see his profile, you can see his quality – it didn’t faze him when he came on. I know he’ll think about that chance (he missed against City) all night long because I’ve been there myself.
“But he’ll score many goals for Aston Villa, he’ll create many goals because he’s that type of talent.
“I think we showed out trust and our belief in him by calling upon him because it was a big substitution but we believed he would get that opportunity.”
With Chukwuemeka uncertain about whether or not Aston Villa is the right place to continue his development, that show of trust could go a long way to convincing him to sign on the dotted line.
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