Liverpool have completed the signing of Joe Hardy from Brentford for an undisclosed fee.
Hardy, a 21-year-old striker, has been snapped up to bolster the under-23 ranks with Rhian Brewster expected to leave on loan to Championship side Swansea City for the remainder of the season.
Hardy scored 40 goals in 80 appearances for Brentford B with three strikes coming in five outings this season.
The forward, who moved to the Griffin Park outfit from Manchester City in 2017, hails from Kirkby and featured for the last 10 minutes for Liverpool U23s in their 1-0 Premier League 2 defeat at City on Sunday.
Brentford B head coach Neil MacFarlane said: "He's perhaps come to the end of his time with the club in terms of the strategy, and to go to a club the size of Liverpool can only be good for him.
"The club are flying at the moment, they're European champions, and potential Premier League winners, so being in and around that environment can only be good for Joe. He's certainly going from an environment here that has prepared him properly.
"We've said it in recent months, that not all of our players will go on to play for Brentford's first team, but what we want to do is give them a career and this is a step forward in Joe's career and his mind to go to Liverpool and compete with the U23 group and see where it takes him."
