LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Sunday, December 6, 2020: Liverpool's Neco Williams is replaced by substitute Trent Alexander-Arnold during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Wolverhampton Wanderers FC at Anfield. Liverpool won 4-0. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Liverpool fans puzzled by “nonsense” plan to replace Neco Williams

With Liverpool expected to allow Neco Williams to leave the club in a £10 million deal this summer, fans are less than impressed with the reported plans to replace him.

It had previously been reported that Williams would remain with the Reds into next season with a view to gaining more experience rotating with Trent Alexander-Arnold.

But it is now widely claimed that Liverpool will allow the 20-year-old to leave in the transfer window, with Southampton, Leeds and Burnley among the sides interested.

A £10 million price tag has been set, and Williams is likely to push for an exit upon his return from the Euros with Wales, with their last-16 clash set for June 26.

According to The Athletic‘s James Pearce among others, however, the club will not sign another right-back to replace the youngster, instead looking for in-house solutions.

Namely, these will come in the form of Joe Gomez, who has vast experience at right-back but is a natural centre-back, and 17-year-old academy defender Conor Bradley.

Gomez is yet to return from a long-term knee injury, while Bradley’s only senior experience came with a four-minute cameo for Northern Ireland in their post-season friendly against Malta last month.

Understandably, supporters have expressed their concerns over the rumoured plans if Williams leaves, with reservations over Gomez in particular:

When it comes to Bradley, the issue is more in throwing an inexperienced teenager into the deep end too early:

Whether these plans are genuine or not remains to be seen, and even if they are they could well change in the coming weeks, as has been the case in the past.

There is scope for Gomez to shift over the right-back on the rare occasion Alexander-Arnold is unavailable, with Ibrahima Konate brought in to bolster the centre-back ranks, but they are far from the same profile of player.

It is a familiar issue for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp, who prefers a smaller squad with fewer specialist options, but this could be a decision that comes back to haunt them.