Super Jordon Ibe spell gives Derby County encouragement over Liverpool’s Sheyi Ojo

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Sheyi Ojo could join Derby County on loan from Liverpool, but would he follow in Jordon Ibe’s footsteps at Pride Park?

As if Sheyi Ojo didn’t have enough options already this summer. According to Sky Sports, Liverpool had agreed to loan offers from Newcastle United, Middlesbrough and Fulham for the talented 20-year-old winger.

Yet, The Times report that Derby County are another name in the frame after Ojo impressed manager Gary Rowett as Liverpool cruised past Tranmere Rovers in a pre-season friendly last week.

Ojo spent time on loan at Wolves in 2015/16

Derby have a huge void to fill in their attack with Tom Ince, who scored and assisted more goals than any other Ram last season, heading for the Premier League with Huddersfield Town. And though Derby have £11 million in the bank from the winger’s sale (Sky Sports), it appears that they would be more than happy to save those funds for a rainy day and instead land Ojo on a season-long loan deal.

You can see why Derby would be interested. Blessed with rapid pace and trickery to match, Ojo is the sort of player that gets fans off their seats, even if his end-product is well below the standards set by the more experienced Ince.

Deja vu

And it would not be the first time Derby have borrowed a jet-heeled young winger from Anfield. Though if Ojo can match the influence of Jordon Ibe at Pride Park, the deal would go down as a roaring success.

Ibe enjoyed a superb spell in the East Midlands during the 2014/15 season, becoming an immediate fans favourite after netting five goals in 14 starts while lighting up the park with his eye-catching bursts of acceleration. In the end, his performances were so impressive that Liverpool recalled the then-19-year-old in January, cutting short his season-long deal.

Ibe benefitted immensely from a spell at Derby

“He’s been outstanding,” then Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers said at the time, as reported by the Liverpool Echo. “That’s the reason why we sent him out – we felt that getting that game experience would help him.”

Ibe returned to Anfield and, for the next few months at least, was a regular in their starting XI. Time will tell whether a potential deal for Ojo would be quite so beneficial.