Kaide Gordon absence explained as 17-year-old nears return

March 16, 2022
Jack Lusby

Kaide Gordon has not been involved with Liverpool’s first team since the 3-1 win over Cardiff in the FA Cup, but the youngster is expected to return imminently.

It has been a stop-start season for Gordon, as he and his club develop an understanding of how to manage his still-developing body in a first taste of senior football.

There have been milestones, namely his first-team debut against Norwich in September and the goal that made him the second-youngest goalscorer in Liverpool history in January, but there have also been setbacks.

Along with his four appearances under Jurgen Klopp, Gordon has only managed 15 more outings at academy level, spread across the under-18s, under-19s and under-23s.

His last appearance came the day after he went unused in the FA Cup victory over Cardiff, with the 17-year-old playing 90 minutes as the U23s lost 3-0 to Leeds at Elland Road a month-and-a-half ago.

While there has been little in the way of information – and rightly so, given his age – Gordon’s absence has now been explained.

Speaking during LFCTV’s coverage of the UEFA Youth League loss at Juventus on Tuesday, commentator Steve Hunter revealed that Gordon has been out with a “little injury,” but it was “nothing serious.”

The player himself recently took to his Instagram story to tell fans he would be “back soon.”

There is a chance, then, that Gordon is back for the run-in with the U23s, with clashes with Man City, Chelsea, Leicester and Man United still to come, along with a Lancashire Senior Cup semi-final against Blackpool.

It seems unlikely that he will be given more first-team exposure, though, due to the increased depth of Klopp’s attack and the high stakes involved.

But he could be expected to rejoin senior training in the coming weeks if his recovery goes as planned, ahead of another opportunity during pre-season.

Liverpool are set to tour the Far East ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, with friendlies pencilled in against Man United and Crystal Palace, and involvement for that trip could be an invaluable experience for Gordon.