Liverpool welcome Barcelona HERO back to first-team training

Liverpool’s youth movement has become a serious talking point this season.

Standout stars like Tyler Morton and Trey Nyoni have already been involved in first-team squads for Champions League matchdays, whilst new signing Rio Ngumoha is making waves in the under-18s set up.

A significant aspect of youth development has been allowing players to train with the first team so as to expose them to the quality levels it is necessary for them to get to.

It was spotted yesterday that Trey Nyoni, Harvey Davies, James Norris and Isaac Mabaya all trained with the first team.

Additionally, they were joined by Oakley Cannonier.

Cannonier’s inclusion is significant as the young striker had been sidelined for the entirety of 2024 due to injury before finally making a comeback to play the first half against Manchester United under-21 a fortnight ago.

Liverpool ran out 1-0 winners that day with a goal from Tyler Morton, who capitalised on a calamitous error from Manchester United’s goalkeeper, Dermot Mee, to find the back of an empty net from the edge of the box.

Who is Oakley Cannonier?

Cannonier’s inclusion in first-team training is incredibly welcome, not just due to his return from injury but also due to his place in club history.

For those who don’t know, Cannonier gained notoriety for being the ball boy who hustled the ball to Trent Alexander-Arnold for his infamous ‘corner taken quickly’ that saw Divock Origi score Liverpool’s fourth in the 2018-19 Champions League semi-final against Barcelona.

The ball boys that day had been instructed to return balls as quickly as possible to set-piece takers due to then-manager Jurgen Klopp’s realisation that Barcelona were slow to get into their defensive positions.

This led to one of the most significant moments in Liverpool’s history as Trent spotted Origi unmarked in the box. Liverpool went on to beat Tottenham in the Champions League final that year.

Before his injury woes, the 20-year-old was showing serious promise. He netted 28 goals and added five assists in 26 games for the under-18 side back in the 2021/22 season. He then added 10 goals in 11 games when moving up to the under-21s side in 2022/23 - including seven in four in the UEFA Youth League, their equivalent of the Champions League - before only seeing action in two of the last 22 games of the season through injury.

His return to under-21 action was cut similarly short last season, playing only one game since October 2023. His three goals in seven appearances that season indicated no serious drop off in ability, however, meaning staff are taking a cautious approach this season with Cannonier.

This is also not the first time the youngster has trained with the first team. Everything points to the club seeing the sky as the limit for the striker.

With Liverpool not having an out-and-out number 9 that they trust this season, as Diogo Jota fills a different profile and Darwin Nuñez's form remains temperamental, new head coach Arne Slot could be turning to the youth star sooner rather than later.