Liverpool has welcomed back a promising talent just in time for pre-season training, and Pep Lijnders will be delighted with how his first day back went
The majority of Liverpool’s players returned to training yesterday. A smaller group had started three days earlier, but most had overseas commitments and were given extra time.
Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones are still away, having just returned from winning the European U21 Championships, but the rest of the team has returned to the AXA Training Centre. With just over a month until the season opener against Chelsea, the hard work has begun in earnest.
Another day of training brought another wave of images and other club content, and there was a lot to learn from it. One item would have pleased Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders, and there was also a positive update on the injury front.
And a story at this time of year would be incomplete without mentioning transfer activity. A number of players who have been linked with moves away were spotted in training, while one youngster who has already decided to leave on loan is also beginning his pre-season at Liverpool.
Here’s what we saw on the first ‘real’ day of Liverpool pre-season, with the dreaded lactate test returning for the first time since James Milner’s injury.
Pep Lijnders receives a new ‘pressing monster’
Jürgen Klopp requires ‘pressing monsters’ for his high-intensity style. However, it was his assistant Lijnders who invented the phrase in reference to Diogo Jota, praising the Portuguese forward upon his debut at the club.
Jota was among those who returned to Liverpool yesterday, but it was likely someone else who piqued Klopp and Lijnders’ interest. In the same group as the former Wolves player, new signing Dominik Szoboszlai looked to win the controversial lactate test.
The official ‘Inside Training’ video from Liverpool depicts Klopp crowning Salah as the ‘new Milner,’ an outcome that many had predicted. Szoboszlai, on the other hand, appeared to outlast the people he was running with, appearing almost careless as he raced ahead of an obviously fatigued Luis Daz and Cody Gakpo.
It’s intriguing to think about what Klopp and Lijnders will accomplish with Szoboszlai’s sprinting ability now that he’s been schooled in the Red Bull system. Another ‘pressing monster’ appears to be in the works.
Injury increase has been confirmed.
You could be forgiven for forgetting about Kaide Gordon, but that’s only because he’s been through an injury nightmare. Growing pains have slowed his formerly stratospheric rise, but at only 18 years old, the fifth-youngest player to ever play for Liverpool is still a great possibility.
While Liverpool is yet to officially say when Gordon will be allowed to play again, an exciting boost was verified when he was spotted in the gym during pre-season, including one activity that involved a football. He was not seen on the field, and the club will no course remain cautious, but it is apparent the youngster is on the mend.
This is Anfield reported this week that Gordon is in the ‘final phases’ of his recuperation. If no setbacks occur, that timeframe would put him back in full training a week from now, possibly even allowing him to participate in pre-season games.
Calvin Ramsay was pictured in the first round of training images, despite having previously agreed to a loan move to Preston. The Championship club’s preparations have already begun, but the Mirror reports that Liverpool will keep him in-house for the start of pre-season to monitor his return from injury.
While the departing move has been agreed upon, others have been speculated about. We’ve been here before, but Nat Phillips is slated to leave this summer, while Sepp van den Berg has been linked with another loan move. Despite this, both have reported for Liverpool training as usual, as seen in the most recent batch of images, with the Dutchman receiving a warm welcome from Jota.
Caoimhn Kelleher has also been seen. Meanwhile, Jordan Henderson, who has been linked with a surprise move to Saudi Arabia (Telegraph), has shocked his teammates with his body.
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