John Barnes has claimed that Kaide Gordon performed well on his Liverpool debut on Tuesday, not just because of how good he is, but because he has the ‘understanding’ to do it, as he told Sky Sports Football (21/09/21 at 10:05 pm)
The 16-year-old started Liverpool’s 3-0 win against Norwich in the League Cup – and played the entire game for his side, as Barnes likened the younger players to ‘Ajax from many years ago’.
Jurgen Klopp threw the ball-carrying talent out on the right, a position occupied by a certain Mohamed Salah on a weekly basis.
But despite playing the first competitive game of his career, Gordon didn’t look out of place out on that Carrow Road pitch.
Barnes spoke about the teenager playing that ‘Mo Salah position’ and how he has been taught to play a certain way.
“It reminds me of Ajax, from many years ago,” said Barnes. “When you are 14,15 and 16 then you understand how to play in the first team. You aren’t physically capable. But you understand.
“So, when you are 17, 18 and get physically stronger then you can go into the team and play like you have been there all the time because you have been doing it for years. They make it obvious as to what they want.
“In the first half, when he (Gordon) was playing in these areas (wide attacking right), from a defensive point of view, you know what is required.
“In the second half, they changed it a little, so he can move into different positions. But, in the first, you could see him playing wide right, being a left-footer, which is what Mo Salah does.
“This is what they explain to him as a 16-year-old. This is not him just playing like this because of how good he is, but understanding how to do it.”
It was a highly impressive night for the younger Liverpool players, sprinkled in with the senior stars who ensured the job was done against their fellow Premier League counterparts.
Norwich might just be sick of the sight of Liverpool because, for the second time, in the space of a few months, they have been beaten 3-0 at the hands of the Reds.
From one newly-promoted side to facing another at the weekend, but it seems as though a different test awaits those from Merseyside on Saturday.
They travel down to London to take on high-flying Brentford, who put seven past Oldham in the EFL Cup last night, and beat Wolves 2-0 over the weekend.
Given the performances some of the youngsters put in yesterday, it will be interesting to see if any of them get a spot on the bench.
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