LONDON (UK) – Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp said the club will not stand in the way of young players who are unable to break into the first team and wish to continue their career elsewhere. This comes in the wake of the club selling Rhian Brewster to Sheffield United.
Amid the tough competition for a spot in the starting lineup at Anfield, the 20-year-old striker was sold for around 23.5 million pounds and the club have a buy-back option for three years.
“If I’m selfish that never helps … All the young boys need to know that we don’t keep them here at all costs just so that we have a solution for one or two games a year. That is not how we work,” Klopp said.
“They need to take some steps in their development and sometimes we are the right place for them to take this development and sometimes we are not.”
Brewster hogged the limelight in 2017 when he captained England in the Under-17 World Cup and scoring eight goals.
But his progress took a beating when he had to undergo surgeries on his ankle and knee before being loaned to Swansea City last season. There he scored 11 times in the second-tier Championship.
“I need a player in the right place and at the right moment, so that means he is ready to fight but has all the tools to fight for the position that the squad gives him the opportunity to fight for,” Klopp added.
“That’s really important, especially for a boy like Rhian who we were 100% concerned about during his development (because of his injury)… This is our boy and since I’ve been here Rhian was here, but unfortunately he got injured.”