Liverpool will again be unable to name a full 25-man squad in the Premier League and Champions League this season, with the Reds not possessing enough homegrown players to fill the required eight-man quota.
Admittedly, it is not a major concern in the short-term, with the Reds possessing a number of talented players under the age of 21, like Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott, who are very much first team players but still don’t need to be registered. As a result, Jurgen Klopp won’t be left short when it comes to submitting his squad for the season.
However, while the England Under-21s pair will boost such numbers in the years ahead, the identity of Liverpool ’s current senior homegrown players is prompting them to think about bolstering their qualifying options further. The Reds currently have seven such players in Joe Gomez, James Milner, Jordan Henderson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Nat Phillips, Caoimhin Kelleher and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
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However, realistically only Gomez and Alexander-Arnold can be confident of boasting long-term Anfield careers. Milner and Oxlade-Chamberlain are both out of contract next summer and could easily move on, despite the Liverpool vice-captain showing no signs of slowing down as he nears his 37th birthday.
Elsewhere, Henderson is also firmly on the wrong side of 30, having celebrated his 32nd birthday in June. As for Phillips and Kelleher, they are valued back-up options for the Reds but know their path to regular starting football is blocked with the likes of Alisson and Virgil van Dijk ahead of them in the pecking order. Therefore, it would be no surprise if they looked to move on in the not too distant future.
Looking to rectify the situation, Liverpool have targeted some of the best domestic homegrown talent in recent windows, bringing in the likes of Fabio Carvalho and Kaide Gordon, along with Elliott, to add to their homegrown ranks. Meanwhile, they’ve also brought in the likes of Calvin Ramsay and Stefan Bajcetic at a young enough age for the teenage pair to be on the club’s books long enough to qualify as homegrown and club-trained before they turn 21.
Also reportedly interested in signing the likes of Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund, the Reds’ homegrown plans are firmly taking shape, even if the results won’t be there to see on submitted squad lists for a couple of seasons yet.
While Liverpool’s incoming business is seemingly done for this summer, with Klopp admitting at his latest press conference that “it doesn’t look like something will happen,” the Reds could maybe be tempted to alter that stance, and in turn increase their homegrown quota further, after one former target became available on the market.
Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi has repeatedly been linked with a move to Anfield over the years, with reports back in March 2019, a couple of months after Bayern Munich had seen a number of bids rejected and he responded by submitting a transfer request, even claiming Liverpool had held talks with his agent during an impressive breakthrough campaign at Stamford Bridge.
Links with the Reds would persist, while Bayern would come back in for the England international the following summer, only to be knocked back by the Londoners again and then see him sign a new five-year contract with Chelsea in September 2019. But that hasn't stopped the England international from continuing to be linked with an exit, despite winning the Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, Europa League and European Super Cup with the club.
While the 21-year-old has made 126 appearances to date for Chelsea, he’s struggled to consistently find his best form after suffering two Achilles injuries in 2019 and last season. Though admittedly he has not been helped by only 66 of his outings coming from the start, and by Thomas Tuchel rarely playing him in his preferred winger role in a traditional front three, given the German tends to utilise a 3-4-2-1 formation.
Having been denied a loan move to Borussia Dortmund last year, reports earlier this week claim a frustrated Hudson-Odoi has asked to leave Chelsea having been left out of Tuchel’s squad altogether for their opening day victory at Everton. Given a lack of alternative attacking options, despite him falling down the pecking order following the signing of Raheem Sterling, his snub was certainly seen as a surprise.
“I want to be playing as much as possible,' the 21-year-old told Chelsea's official website last month. “Regular football brings out the consistency so I want to just keep playing and playing as much as I can.”
With the 2022 World Cup on the horizon, the winger is said to want to leave Stamford Bridge, at least temporarily, in a bid to increase his chances of playing regularly. Dortmund reportedly maintain interest in the winger, while Leicester City and Southampton are both said to be among as many as 20 clubs monitoring his situation ahead of a potential exit.
While a temporary switch is perhaps more likely, the same was thought of Timo Werner when RB Leipzig opened talks to re-sign him for Chelsea, only for loan discussions to quickly turn into a permanent deal. And while there is no guarantee of Hudson-Odoi’s situation taking a similar turn, he is now inside the final two years of that contract signed back in 2019, and does look set to be one of a number of players to leave the club before the transfer window closes in three weeks’ time.
There has been no suggestion of Liverpool reigniting reported interest in Hudson-Odoi, but it could prove to be a shrewd move if they did turn to the wantaway winger. And not just to continue their recent recruitment drive by adding to their homegrown numbers.
Klopp had seven senior international forwards to choose between last season, but has waved off Sadio Mane, Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi this summer. While bringing in Darwin Nunez and Carvalho, the Reds’ depth isn’t as deep as a result and has been stretched already by an ever-growing injury list.
However, with Hudson-Odoi capable of playing on either flank as well as centrally in attack, he could be a valuable asset. And having enjoyed more game-time on the right during his career, he could also be an alternative to Mohamed Salah at a time when Elliott, who could be needed in midfield, is the only reserve.
With Klopp one of the best man-managers around and favouring a 4-3-3 formation, there is no reason to believe why he couldn’t get the 21-year-old back firing while also playing him in his preferred position. And the England international only needs to look to the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Elliott, Jones and now Carvalho to see that the door to Klopp’s first team is firmly open for young players.
Meanwhile, Salah is the perfect example of the heights a player can reach at Anfield despite faltering at Stamford Bridge.
Hudson-Odoi already has his admirers on Merseyside, with Andy Robertson singing his praises after coming up against the Chelsea man back in 2019.
“I knew about him before, a lot has been said about him. He has been linked with Bayern Munich and made his England debut,” the Scot said. I’m sure he has a fantastic career ahead of him, he is only young. It is better not to put too much pressure on him because he can be a great player.
“I managed to keep him quite quiet which is a positive for me because I know how good and creative he can be. I was just happy to see the back of him when he was taken off. But I’m sure he will go on to big things.”
Meanwhile, inter-transfers between Europe’s elite sides has been a growing trend since the coronavirus pandemic struck as clubs continue to contend with the financial ramifications. This summer alone Sterling has traded Man City for Stamford Bridge, while Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko also leaving the Etihad to sign for Arsenal.
While Hudson-Odoi looks unlikely to add to that list at this time, he is edging closer to the Chelsea exit door with the chance of a long-term career at Stamford Bridge continuing to fade. And with the winger potentially soon to be available for a cut-price fee, he’d certainly tick a lot of Liverpool boxes if the Reds did look to re-enter the transfer market.
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