Ex-Man City midfielder training with Liverpool first team

Liverpool got the better of Manchester City last weekend.

In an emphatic 2-0 victory at Anfield Arne Slot reigned supreme over Pep Guardiola and now has an 11 point advantage in the Premier League title race.

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A lot can still happen from now until the end of the season, but Liverpool will be feeling very confident right now.

They have dismantled Manchester City and Real Madrid in a week and are looking hot favourites to go all the way in both the league and in the Champions League.

Amid Liverpool's great run of form, there's plenty of excitement around the club's young talents as well.

And there's an ex-Man City midfielder who is now making great strides at the club.

James Balagizi returns to Liverpool first team

Liverpool have a lot of injuries at the moment when it comes to the first team with potentially up to six players ruled out of the Reds' trip to Newcastle United.

However, Slot has also been handed a positive injury boost with the return of James Balagizi according to Lewis Bower.

The young Liverpool midfielder is a very highly rated prospect in the club's academy who was actually signed from Manchester City at youth level.

Balagizi made brilliant strides when he first emerged onto the scene. However, he has since struggled to make a mark while on loan due to several injuries.

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Nonetheless, he is still a very highly rated player and only 21 years old with plenty of time to get his career back on track.

Balagizi was certainly sensaitonal in his single outing for Liverpool's U21 side so far this season, scoring one and registering an assist in a 3-2 victory over Sunderland back in September.

Slot isn't short of midfielders at the moment, but Bower has claimed that Balagizi is training with the first team squad at the moment which bodes well for the former Man City midfielder.

Clearly, that would suggest Slot is open to taking a look at the young Liverpool star and assess him.

A loan move is still probably the most likely next step for Balagizi in the January transfer window. But perhaps a debut in the FA Cup could be on the cards before that if he manages to catch Slot's eye in training.

Watch this space.

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