It was a productive week for Liverpool’s loanees, with Taiwo Awoniyi on the scoresheet and goalkeeper Shamal George claiming an unlikely assist.
Awoniyi has settled in perfectly at Royal Excel Mouscron, and the striker was among the goals on Sunday as he netted his second of the season.
Disappointingly the strike came in a 2-1 loss at Zulte Waragem, but the Nigerian was a real positive as he took just 16 minutes to open the scoring with a superb individual effort.
Awoniyi displayed impressive strength to secure possession outside the box, before showing great speed to glide through the Waregem defence and producing a composed finish when one-on-one.
Awoniyi now has two goals and two assists from five games and his challenge is to continue this excellent form.
It proved a memorable week for George at Carlisle United, with the young ‘keeper making his Football League debut and following that with an assist—yes, really—in his second game.
His maiden outing didn’t quite go as hoped as George conceded twice in a 2-0 loss to Coventry City, but he marked a special occasion with a decent display—making two sharp stops, while he could do little about either goal.
Manager Keith Curle clearly felt it was a positive outing too as he kept George in against Barnet on Saturday, and it proved the right call with the ‘keeper inspiring his side at both ends of the pitch.
George was again in good form in the 1-1 draw—unable to prevent the goal while making more sharp stops in his actual job—but he also stepped up as the unlikely supplier of his side’s stunning late equaliser.
In truth, it was almost all down to a magnificent piece of skill from goalscorer Shaun Miller that George actually registered the assist.
But it was still from the 19-year-old’s pass that the striker controlled and volleyed home an incredible bicycle kick to earn a point—certainly deserving of far more—making George Carlisle’s joint-top assist provider this season.
Sheyi Ojo made a welcome return from injury in midweek playing 90 minutes against Hull City, and he took no time to settle back in—playing a key role in Fulham’s 2-1 win by claiming an assist.
https://twitter.com/FulhamFirst/status/908054979272986624
Ojo played on the right of a front three, but it was from the left that he produced the all the good work for his side’s first—bursting to the byline before delivering a great cross which Floyd Ayite converted.
The assist capped off a good overall display from Ojo, who enjoyed a second consecutive full game in a 2-1 loss at Burton Albion on Saturday.
https://twitter.com/sheyi_ojo/status/908073866819506176
The winger again played from the right and he was in positive form despite the loss—posing a constant goal threat as he hit more shots on goal (four) than any other Fulham player.
After a slow start at Willem II, Pedro Chirivella sparked to life with an influential display in a 3-1 win at Roda JC—in which he indirectly claimed an assist.
Operating in a box-to-box role, Chirivella took advantage of his increased freedom as he regularly broke from midfield to support attacks, and this was how he instigated his side’s second goal.
With Roda making a mess playing out from the back, Chirivella seized the opportunity to press and he forced an error, inadvertently steering the ball into the path of his team-mate who pounced and finished.
It may not have been an assist in the truest sense but the game-changing contribution will provide a confidence boost for Chirivella, who will hopefully raise his game another level.
Ryan Kent enjoyed a special moment on Sunday as he made his Bundesliga debut for Freiburg against Bayer Leverkusen.
The winger’s maiden outing came in far from ideal circumstances in a heavy 4-0 loss, with the 20-year-old entering at half-time by which time his team already trailed 3-0.
Coming into somewhat of a ‘free’ game in a little pressure situation, Kent took the opportunity to impress—and did so particularly with his trickery and pacy dribbling.
It wasn’t as rewarding a weekend for fellow Bundesliga loanee Divock Origi who struggled on his second consecutive start for Wolfsburg in a 1-0 loss at Stuttgart.
The 22-year-old played in a strike partnership alongside Landry Dimata, but he turned in the sort of flat performance seen too regularly at Anfield.
Origi was on the periphery of the action throughout, illustrated as he made just 33 touches—the fewest of anyone to play 90 minutes—and he also failed to post a shot on target.
Elsewhere in Europe, Allan Rodrigues‘ wait for a debut at Appollon Limssol continues, with the Brazilian unused for his side’s Europa League draw against Lyon.
Allan will hope his first taste of match action arrives on Monday night, when his team take on Ermis in the league.
In MLS, Brooks Lennon had to settle for a cameo role for the second game running, with the striker playing the final 15 minutes to help see out a 2-1 win over Portland timbers.
It proved a productive week for Liverpool’s remaining Football League loanees, with Jordan Williams in bright form at Rochdale.
The midfielder helped the League One side to three points from six and impressed in midweek in particular—producing a combative display in a 2-1 comeback win over Doncaster.
Williams’ strong showing earned him a third consecutive start against MK Dons and he played all 90 minutes of a 3-2 defeat—again turning in a hardworking display though this time without reward.
In League Two, Toni Gomes made two substitute appearances for Forest Green Rovers, featuring for the last 13 minutes of a 1-0 loss to Lincoln before enjoying an extended runout on Saturday—playing his part in a dominant second half to help rescue a point at Port Vale.
Finally, Connor Randall sat out Hearts’ 1-1 draw at Hamilton on Saturday with a knock.
Liverpool’s Loanees This Week
- Divock Origi – Wolfsburg – Played 90 mins vs. Stuttgart
- Ryan Kent – Freiburg – Played 45 mins vs. Bayer Leverkusen
- Sheyi Ojo – Fulham – Played 90 mins and claimed assist vs. Hull & 90 mins vs. Burton
- Connor Randall – Hearts – Left out due to injury
- Pedro Chirivella – Willem II – Played 90 mins, claiming assist vs. Roda JC
- Taiwo Awoniyi – Mouscron – Played 90 mins and scored vs. Zulte Waregem
- Allan Rodrigues – Apollon Limassol – Unused sub vs. Lyon
- Jordan Williams – Rochdale – Played 84 mins vs. Doncaster & 90 mins vs. MK Dons
- Toni Gomes – Forest Green – Played 13 mins vs. Lincoln & 45 mins vs. Port Vale
- Shamal George – Carlisle – Played 90 mins vs. Coventry & 90 mins, posting assist vs. Barnet
- Brooks Lennon – Real Salt Lake – Played 15 mins vs. Portland Timbers
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