Carvalho wins trophy, defenders debut – but Liverpool loanees lack minutes

August 14, 2023
Jack Lusby

There were three debuts for Liverpool loanees over the weekend, with Fabio Carvalho‘s first outing for RB Leipzig ending with a trophy lift.

Jurgen Klopp‘s Reds were not the only side to get their campaign underway over the past few days, with many of the club’s loanees also in action for the first time.

That included a cameo for Carvalho, as RB Leipzig thrashed Bayern Munich to win the German equivalent of the Community Shield on Saturday.

Harry Kane came off the bench for his new club but suffered another trophy defeat, as Dani Olmo’s hat-trick secured victory for Leipzig.

Not a first-choice starter at this stage, Carvalho replaced Olmo with 12 minutes left, and his debut ended by lifting the DFL-Supercup.

Elsewhere in Germany, Sepp van den Berg made his debut for Mainz as a second-half substitute, playing 10 minutes in a 1-0 win over SV Elversberg in the DFB-Pokal first round.

There was also a bow for defender Anderson Arroyo with Spanish second-tier side FC Andorra, the Colombian lasting the full 90 in a 1-0 victory at Leganes.

Harvey Davies made his third consecutive start for Crewe, as they came from behind to draw 2-2 away to Swindon in League One.

The 19-year-old has claimed first-choice duties on loan, and despite conceding his fourth and fifth goals so far, he impressed on Saturday.

Owen Beck also played the full 90 minutes as Dundee lost 2-1 to St Mirren, as did Adam Lewis in a resounding 4-0 win as Newport County overcame Doncaster.

It was a frustrating weekend for five others, though, with no minutes afforded to James Balagizi, Dominic Corness, Jakub Ojrzynski and the injured Calvin Ramsay and Rhys Williams.

Balagizi watched on as Wigan sealed a 2-1 win over Northampton, while Corness went unused in Yverdon Sport’s 6-1 defeat to Lugano.

Ojrzynski is expected to be second choice to Joey Roggeveen with Dutch second-tier outfit Den Bosch, warming the bench during a 1-0 win over TOP Oss to kick off the Eerste Divisie campaign.