Football
Glenn Price, Liverpool correspondent 8y

Jurgen Klopp 'trusts' Liverpool's young players to play for first-team

Jurgen Klopp has said Liverpool's youngsters retain his "trust" and will get opportunities to prove their worth this season despite the team having a lighter schedule.

Liverpool's failure to qualify for European football last campaign makes it more difficult for those in the academy to make a breakthrough as there are less games to play, but the Reds boss says he will give his younger players a go in the first team if an appropriate situation arises.

Klopp recently watched Liverpool under-23s beat Leicester City 4-0 at Prenton Park and was delighted by what he saw.

"It was great to see," Klopp said. "The youngsters are all in a good way. It's our job is to give them the prospect for a decent career. We can't say as a club we only want to use the brilliant ones. Who decides when development stops?

"I was really happy with that game and that I had the opportunity to watch it. It won't be the last one I watch.

"What does it mean in terms of a breakthrough this year? There will be a moment when they can play. If I need them absolutely no problem. I trust them."

He added: "The question is do we really need them now or can we give them time to develop?

"There is no rush for these young guys. We don't feel rushed so they don't have to feel rushed. They can stay patient. I know they are really ambitious and that's good.

"Watching that U23s game, it was really close to what I was thinking about when we first spoke about what the second-team squad should be like."

The likes of Ben Woodburn, Ovie Ejaria and Trent Alexander-Arnold featured for the first team in preseason, with the trio catching the eye of Klopp after a number of impressive performances.

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