Liverpool plans change for £600,000 signing but Jurgen Klopp has already hinted at outcome

Ben Doak has suffered a frustrating time this season but Liverpool have demonstrated the teenage winger will be given chances on his return

For Ben Doak, this was not how the season was supposed to go. Arriving from Celtic for £600,000 the year before, Doak quickly rose through the Academy ranks. As part of Liverpool’s pre-season training, the first team players traveled to Germany and then Singapore.

The young player made an impression during the 4-0 victory over Leicester City in the Far East, as evidenced by his inclusion in the starting lineup for the Premier League’s opening weekend against Chelsea. He came on for the final 13 minutes to take Mohamed Salah’s position on the right side.

In August, Virgil van Dijk, the captain of Liverpool, referred to him as a “Tasmanian devil” due to his rapid speed. “If his decision-making gets better, and he has all the time in the world for that, then he could definitely be one for the future.”

There seemed to be plenty of room for Doak to establish himself as a contender to take Salah’s place when the Egyptian player temporarily leaves for Africa Cup of Nations duty next month. Group games in the Europa League and the first stages of the League Cup were viewed as opportunities for Doak to bolster his senior experience.

But for Doak, it hasn’t really happened despite some playing time. Three starts in Europe have only lasted an hour; in fact, he was substituted at halftime during the Toulouse loss; in his only League Cup match, at home against Leicester, he played for 65 minutes and missed a great opportunity to open his senior account. His live performances have fallen short of the initial excitement.

The requirement to be in the starting lineup has frequently left Doak in limbo; aside from his one EFL Trophy appearance in the 4-0 second round thrashing against League Two Bradford City, he has been an unused replacement for Jurgen Klopp’s club eleven times and has not been able to accrue minutes with the under-21 squad. Not ideal at this early developmental stage  in a career.

And just two weeks ago, when the 18-year-old was finally given a start in Premier League 2 against Chelsea at home, he tore his lateral meniscus, requiring surgery and resulting in a lengthy layoff that will be measured in months rather than weeks.

Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders stated, “He is young, he is a fit guy, and he is a positive guy so for sure he will come back stronger. We need him to come back with the same fire he has with the ball, how he was.” “We’ll wait for him; he may need some time.”

Lijnders was reiterating a commonly used statement by Klopp about players with chronic injuries. Liverpool has a tradition of standing behind absent youth, not just lip service. Having started on the left wing against Union Saint-Gilloise in Brussels earlier this month with Kaide Gordon on the other flank, Doak doesn’t really need to search far for proof of that.

Gordon, who made his big debut in the 2021–2022 season, was playing for the first time as a senior in almost two years due to a growth-related pelvic issue. Since the child is still just 19, time is still very much on his or her favor.

More recent instances include Bobby Clark’s bench appearance against Arsenal last Saturday after more than two months out injured and Conor Bradley’s comeback to the starting lineup following a four-month absence due to a back problem. Bradley and Clark signed new long-term contracts this season, similar to Doak.

It’s possible that Doak has been frustrated and disappointed in recent months over a chance to take over as Salah’s temporary replacement. However, Liverpool has already demonstrated that there will be more  chances for the Scotland under-21 international on his return.