Sharp, skillful, game.
Ben Woodburn is a precocious talent, he’s a pure footballer, but he’s tenacious too. He’s up for it. He’ll go in and win a dirty ball and then he’ll spread you on toast if you let him.
To make it in this game, you have to be bloody good. Everyone plays football, you don’t come through the system if you’re a mug – unless you’re Tom Cleverley. To make it at Liverpool though, you have to be more than just a good footballer. You have to have something else and you have to have something inside you.
A pride. A drive. A desire.
Ben Woodburn is only 17. He has a long way to go before he even starts to show that he can make it – but Anfield on a cup Sunday is as good a place to start as any.
The Wales underage international made his first start for Liverpool in the 0-0 draw with Plymouth Argyle and, although the game ended in a scoreless draw with Klopp’s men now forced to travel to the League 2 outfit to advance in the FA Cup, young Woodburn warmed the hearts of a few onlookers.
#LFC Jurgen Klopp: "We'll go to Plymouth for the first time in my life so it's all good"#MagicOfTheCup
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) January 8, 2017
He looked composed under pressure and he he knew where the goals were.
https://twitter.com/lfcgif/status/818093178746191872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
He got 74 minutes in all and his shift was greatly appreciated and admired by the Kop faithful. Some of them at least.
We’ll not bother with the tweets from this game, Liverpool fans on social media are very angry right now. Come back later.
You know, he’s only just turned 17 too.
To put it into context how young he is: Lucas Leiva, ladies and gentlemen.
Ben Woodburn was 9 when Lucas Leiva last scored a domestic goal for Liverpool.
The Brazilian midfielder has scored just once for the club in league or cup football in England. That was in his second season, a header against Newcastle in the 2008/09 season.
- Lucas last scored (only scored) in May 2009.
- Ben Woodburn was born in October 1999.
He hadn’t even hit his 10th birthday when Lucas was last hitting the net.
In fairness to Lucas, he did score in the Europa League a season later when Woodburn was all grown up at 10 years of age.
Is Woodburn emerging ridiculously early? Or is Lucas just ridiculously shit in front of goals?
You’re right, it’s a bit of both. And yet the midfielder thought he was the man to step up in the 95th minute to hit a 30-yard effort against Plymouth on Sunday. He wasn’t.
Ben Woodburn will have better luck in his career though. He’s going places.
