Liverpool Under-18s strolled to a comfortable 5-1 victory over Derby County on Saturday to bounce back from their FA Youth Cup heartbreak and send a warning ahead of next week's decisive UEFA Youth League clash with Red Bull Salzburg.
The young Reds headed into the clash with the Rams having seen their cup defence end at the first hurdle in midweek following a 4-2 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.
But with a guaranteed place UEFA Youth League knockout stages up for grabs on Tuesday, Liverpool sent out the perfect message to their Austrian counterparts as they responded in style.
Trailing to a Jack Stretton strike shortly before the break, Barry Lewtas' side turned the game on its head after the interval with an astonishing three-goal haul in just four second-half minutes.
Captain Fidel O’Rourke equalised for Liverpool shortly after the restart before a Jake Cain brace ensured the Reds quickly took control of proceedings against the Rams.
Layton Stewart added a fourth on 70 minutes before a last-minute Jaden Charles own goal wrapped up Liverpool's win.
Speaking after the game, Lewtas told Liverpoolfc.com : “We have had a tough week and the lads were disappointed to go out of the FA Youth Cup on Monday but this was a nice response.
“We were 1-0 down at half-time but still played some really nice football and we kept creating chances.
“We got the breakthrough and in the end we were quite ruthless and clinical, which was pleasing from our point of view.
“We put them under a lot of pressure and it was a really good way to end our league programme for this year.”
Already guaranteed a spot in at least the UEFA Youth League play-offs, Liverpool now face Salzburg knowing victory or a draw would be enough to cement top spot at the Austrians' expense.
