Neco Williams did not have the chance to don Fulham‘s colours again this season as injury ruled him out of their Championship finale at Sheffield United.
The 21-year-old enjoyed a productive loan spell at Craven Cottage after swapping Liverpool for Fulham in the January transfer window.
Williams featured 15 times for Marco Silva’s side, scoring and assisting twice, as they dominated the Championship to secure automatic promotion back to the Premier League.
But his final appearance for the Cottagers, this season at least, came against Nottingham Forest in late April having missed the 7-0 thumping of Luton and the final trip to Sheffield United.
Silva confirmed his absence on the final day was due to “a small issue in his knee.” The Fulham boss was quick to say it is “Nothing serious, but he won’t be available for the next match.”
It effectively brings Williams’ loan to a close and a return to Anfield beckons ahead of a pivotal summer in his young career.
The Welshman signed a five-year Liverpool contract in 2020 and knows an Anfield stay would see him continue to act as Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s deputy, but talks of an exit have long existed.
Williams has previously acknowledged that he will return “a more mature player and improved player” but that he “wants to play as much as possible.”
With a shot at a World Cup campaign with Wales, Williams will not want to see his momentum halted but minutes at Liverpool would come only as a rotation option for Liverpool’s No. 66.
A permanent switch was flirted with last summer, with Liverpool open to an exit with a £10 million bid but it soon cooled and Williams remained for the first half of the season.
It, therefore, presents this summer as an important juncture in his young career as he will not be short on suitors, Fulham will likely be one – but it will have to be right for the player and Liverpool.
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