With plenty of new faces brought in at Liverpool so far this summer, Henry Jackson selects three Reds stars who should spend next season on loan.
Brendan Rodgers is building a stronger squad than he has had previously at Anfield, with James Milner, Danny Ings, Roberto Firmino and Nathaniel Clyne the pick of the summer additions so far.
While this added depth and quality is a positive, for some young players this means even less chance of breaking into the first team next season.
In order to benefit their own careers and not grow stagnant with a lack of football at Anfield, a loan move in 2015/16 would act as a definite advantage for several Liverpool players.
There are three hugely promising youngsters who stand out in that respect.
Joe Gomez is one of the six new faces to arrive on Merseyside since the end of last season, but he is very much a long-term acquisition rather than an immediate first-team player.
The 18-year-old defender joined Liverpool for £3.5 million from Charlton Athletic—he also currently stars for England’s Under-19s—and is seen as one of the most promising young players in the country.
Despite the centre-back’s undoubted potential, it seems very unlikely that Rodgers will see him featuring much in 2015/16.
It makes sense to send him elsewhere for a season in order to continue his growth as a player.
Martin Skrtel, Mamadou Sakho, Dejan Lovren and Kolo Toure are all ahead of Gomez in the pecking order—Tiago Ilori will be too, assuming he doesn’t go out on loan himself.
So keeping him at Anfield for the next 12 months would not be beneficial to the player or the club.
One of the most exciting members of the Reds’ youth team since signing from MK Dons in 2011, Sheyi Ojo is a player Liverpool have extremely high hopes for.
The 18-year-old forward is blessed with great natural ability and pace, much like Raheem Sterling, and is seen a potential future star at Anfield.
Despite this, Ojo is still someone very much developing as a player, and is yet to make a first-team appearance for Liverpool.
He spent last term on loan at Wigan Athletic, playing 11 times in the Championship, and another season in England’s second tier would suit him.
It would both toughen him up and guarantee him more playing time.
With Jordon Ibe likely to progress further in 2015/16, and the likes of Firmino, Philippe Coutinho, Lazar Markovic and Adam Lallana playing in areas Ojo is accustomed to starring in, his chances would be limited.
Another year in the hustle and bustle of the Championship will definitely serve him well, much in the way Ibe thrived at Derby County during the first half of 2014/15.
Jerome Sinclair
Another star of Liverpool’s academy, Jerome Sinclair has banged in the goals ever since joining the Reds from West Bromwich Albion in 2011.
It has been suggested that coaches at the club feel the 18-year-old striker has as much potential as Sterling, albeit in a slightly different role.
Sinclair became Liverpool’s youngest ever player when he made his debut against West Brom in September 2012, at the age of just 16 years and six days.
Since then, he has gone on to appear twice more for the first team, but his chances have been understandably limited—even if the Reds’ strikers were generally appalling last season.
Ings has joined from Burnley and Divock Origi will return from Lille, Christian Benteke remains likely to be Liverpool’s big-money striker brought in and Daniel Sturridge will return from injury around October.
It is, therefore, very hard to see how Sinclair will possibly feature much at all with those players ahead of him.
The lethal finisher had a brief spell at Wigan in 2015/16, but only appeared once for the Latics.
A longer, more fulfilling time on loan somewhere next season will stand him in good stead in the future.
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Which other Liverpool players would benefit from a loan move in 2015/16? Let us know in the comments below.
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