Liverpool youngster Harvey Davies has spoken of his pride at making his England debut, having made his first start in the under-19s’ 3-1 victory over Mexico.
Davies has enjoyed an impressive rise to prominence over the last 12 months, having been part of the Reds’ Champions League squad three times and trained with the first team on a regular basis.
Though he failed to make an appearance during pre-season, the Scouser spent most of the summer with Jurgen Klopp‘s squad, and has featured for the under-18s, under-19s and under-21s already this campaign.
With two clean sheets in seven games, Davies has recorded more shutouts than any other goalkeeper in Liverpool’s academy, with Liam Hughes and Marcelo Pitaluga the only others to keep one.
Not only has he gone up in the estimations of the coaches at Kirkby, including Jurgen Klopp, but the 18-year-old has also earned recognition on the international stage.
Having spent the September break working with the England under-20s – his first-ever call-up at any age group – Davies was named in the U19s squad to play France, Mexico and Belgium in three friendlies in Marbella this month.
After sitting out of the opening game, which resulted in a 3-1 defeat, Davies was part of the starting lineup to play Mexico on Saturday afternoon.
The teenager played the full 90 minutes, and though he conceded the opening goal through Fidel Ambriz, it was a hugely positive game for Davies.
The following day, Davies took to Instagram to reflect on a “really proud moment” in making his England debut, adding that it was “even better to win 3-1”:
It remains to be seen whether Davies will keep his place for the final friendly of the break against Belgium on Tuesday, though it is likely Ian Foster will test out the third goalkeeper called up, Filip Marschall.
Kaide Gordon was initially named in Foster’s 23-man squad, but pulled out to be replaced by Liverpool team-mate James Balagizi.
Balagizi came off the bench against Mexico, with James Norris starting and playing 60 minutes while young Reds’ left-back Luke Chambers was an unused substitute.
There has been no explanation given for Gordon’s withdrawal from the squad, though he has only made one 45-minute appearance for the Liverpool U19s since his first-team debut against Norwich.
He was substituted at half-time in that 1-1 draw with Porto in the UEFA Youth League, with the expectation being that his minutes – and ambitions – are being managed after a relatively high-profile first outing.
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