Late last July, with preparations for the new season in full swing, Jurgen Klopp expressed his excitement about the future.
Klopp has always been committed to giving youth a chance and it will never be forgotten at the club how one of his first acts as manager, in October 2015, was to spend a Saturday morning watching an Under 18s game at the academy.
Clubs only move forward if they keep planning ahead and Klopp has never flinched in his search for new blood for Liverpool’s team, so what he saw on the training pitches in pre-season left him purring.
The future looks bright for Liverpool as quartet of young stars impressed during the final
Harvey Elliott — 18 and full of promise — had sufficiently progressed following a season on loan at Blackburn that Klopp was only too happy to let Xherdan Shaqiri move to Lyon. Ibrahima Konate, the France Under 21 defender, looked good following his move from RB Leipzig.
Caoimhin Keheller had made so many steps under the tutelage of goalkeeper coach John Achterberg that Klopp was adamant he must be Alisson’s deputy, not the significantly more experienced Adrian.
There were others. Owen Beck — a left back who is related to the club’s record scorer Ian Rush —was improving, as was midfielder Tyler Morton and Kaide Gordon, who had been signed from Derby County seven months earlier.
Jurgen Klopp has always been committed to giving youth a chance and it is now getting results – new signing Luis Diaz, 25, also impressed at Wembley on Sunday
‘We have a bunch of players we are really excited about,’ said Klopp (right) back then. ‘It’s a win-win situation.’
On Sunday, it was simply a ‘win’ situation.
The way in which Liverpool plotted their way through the Carabao Cup, giving opportunities to Gordon and Morton and Beck, plus others such as Conor Bradley and Harvey Blair — who played at Preston in the fourth round — proved the academy is thriving.
One of the German’s first acts when he first joined the club was to watch an Under 18s game
‘We’ve used all the squad from the start of the competition,’ said captain Jordan Henderson after the final win against Chelsea. ‘The first team and academy have all chipped in, which makes it even more special.’
What was especially significant in extra time, though, was how Klopp turned to Konate and Elliott as two of his substitutions and gave Kelleher the platform to show why he rates him the ‘best No 2 in the world’.
You could envisage how the team will develop. This is not saying the end of the line has been reached for the men who have brought the good times back, but it is clear the planning will not stop.
Elliott, who will have caught the eye of England manager Gareth Southgate, is held in the highest regard at the club — a young man who embraces the opportunities he is given.
As the youngest player to appear in the Premier League, talent has never been in question for Elliott but what he has shown — especially in coming back so quickly from an ankle fracture last September — is the mentality to thrive.
His approach is no different to that of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who has been around for years yet is only 23 and it is inconceivable that he won’t continue to improve. His childhood ambition was to captain Liverpool and, one day, the armband will surely be his.
When you factor in Luis Diaz, the 25-year-old Colombia winger who was signed from Porto in January, Diogo Jota (25), Joe Gomez (24) and Kostas Tsimikas (25), the framework is in place for Liverpool to enjoy a smooth transition.
That will be a source of great satisfaction for Klopp, who was dealing with questions last season that the team he had taken to the summit of English football in 2020 were in danger of getting old all at the same time.
The manager’s appetite to build another great team is huge. There will be more changes in the summer and big decisions to make, with Divock Origi — whose professionalism has been exemplary — certain to leave when his contract expires.
Needing to strengthen in midfield, young star Jude Bellingham is reportedly on Klopp’s radar
Midfield is an area that Klopp will address at some point.
One player who would definitely fit Liverpool’s project is Jude Bellingham but whether they have the money to do a deal for Borussia Dortmund’s £100million-rated 18-year-old is another question altogether.
What is for certain is that the future looks exciting and pursuing more trophies is the best education these young men could receive.
Liverpool brought in a German company called neuro11 last summer to work with the players on dealing with high-pressure situations, such as penalty shootouts and set-pieces.
‘We worked with them,’ said Klopp. ‘In pre-season you should have seen the boys in the training camp. Compliments to the boys, they did an incredible job. I’m really happy we could win the cup like this.’
And really happy, above all, that the future is looking bright.