Academy in focus: Bobby Clark looks every inch a Jürgen Klopp player, and has his eye on Liverpool's senior side
The 18-year-old made his Premier League debut for the Reds last season, and has done plenty to impress since joining from Newcastle United in 2021
The knees may have been trembling a little, but the smiles were as wide as the Mersey tunnel, and why wouldn’t they be?
A sunny August day, a packed and raucous Anfield, a Liverpool side on its way to a record-breaking victory, and now professional debuts for two gifted young footballers with the world at their feet?
Perfect Saturday.
One of those young footballers, of course, would go on to make quite the impression over the next few months. Stefan Bajčetić may have been a virtual unknown when replacing Jordan Henderson, 20 minutes from the end of the Reds’ 9-0 win over Bournemouth, but by the time the season was over he was a fully-fledged member of Jürgen Klopp’s senior squad, racking up 19 appearances before injury brought a premature end to his breakthrough campaign.
Bajčetić will, understandably, be eased back into action during pre-season, but he can expect to play a significant role going forward, with Klopp and his staff having been blown away by the 18-year-old’s development and the maturity with which he goes about his business. The Spaniard’s future is bright, for sure.
So too is that of the other fresh-faced teen who made his bow in that Bournemouth thrashing. Bobby Clark may not have had as much first-team exposure as Bajčetić since, but you won’t find many with a bad word to say about his progress and prospects at Anfield. There’s a long way to go and a lot of work to be done, but the kid has a chance.
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