Liverpool U23s midfielder Cameron Brannagan will spend the rest of the 2016/17 campaign on loan with League One side Fleetwood Town.
Brannagan broke through into the first team last season, but has since dropped back down the pecking order, with Jurgen Klopp preferring Ovie Ejaria in midfield.
Having lost his U23 captaincy to Harry Wilson, too, Brannagan has cut an ill-fitting figure in the Reds’ academy this season, needing a short-term move to revive his fortunes.
This has come with the Reds’ pre-season opponents Fleetwood, as the club confirmed on Friday afternoon.
Fleetwood, currently managed by Uwe Rosler, are fourth in League One, and will be battling the likes of Sheffield United, Scunthorpe and Bolton Wanderers for promotion.
Brannagan can aid their bid for the Championship, with the 20-year-old an accomplished playmaker who can play a variety of positions.
He has made nine appearances for Liverpool so far in his career, and will be hoping his time with Fleetwood will ensure he regains his first-team role under Klopp.
Good luck @Cameron246bran .. great loan move for u ?? @ftfc #LFC #Academy
— Rob Jones (@RobjonesLFC2) January 27, 2017
Competing with Eggert Gunnthor Jonsson, Kyle Dempsey, Bobby Grant, Jimmy Ryan, George Glendon and Victor Nirennold, however, Brannagan still faces a fight for minutes at Fleetwood.
He is the second Liverpool player to join the Trawlermen this month, following left-back Joe Maguire, who signed on a permanent deal.
Brannagan has just recovered from an ankle injury, and has missed the last month of action, but recently returned to full fitness in order to seal his move away.
The Salford-born midfielder is the fifth player to leave the club in January overall, with Maguire, Tiago Ilori (Reading, £3.75m), Pedro Chirivella (Go Ahead Eagles, loan) and Lazar Markovic (Hull City, loan) also having departed.
He won’t be the last, either, with Mamadou Sakho widely expected to seal a move away before the end of the window, with Southampton and Crystal Palace his most likely destinations.
Furthermore, Brannagan’s U23s team-mate Connor Randall is believed to be on the radar of Barnsley and Preston North End, with the right-back due to join the Reds loanee ranks.
Klopp isn’t set to add to his squad before January 31, however, with Christian Pulisic, Julian Brandt and Julian Draxler all slipping from his grasp.
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