Jurgen Klopp professed that he ‘loved’ Conor Bradley ‘since the first day’ he came to Liverpool, as the 20-year-old sensation was Man of the Match in a resounding 4-1 win against Chelsea.
As Jurgen Klopp’s senior squad prepares to compete on all fronts this season, the Reds’
academy appears to be a key part of that with Conor Bradley the latest name to shine.
After assisting Diogo Jota’s opener, Bradley fired in his first Premier League goal that was greeted by an ecstatic roar around Anfield. He then provided the cross for Dominik Szoboszlai’s header to make it 3-0 in the second half, which was followed by a standing ovation as he was substituted not long after.
Embed from Getty ImagesJurgen Klopp was buzzing to see Bradley find the back of the net as well as his defensive prowess against a tough opponent.
“What a wonderful kid he is, it was an outstanding finish,” Klopp said.
“Plus the whole game, the contribution, the involvement. It’s a job to play against Raheem Sterling that’s not easy. I’m really happy for him.”
Stepping up when Trent Alexander-Arnold got injured, now he’s making himself undroppable. His boss always knew he had the potential to thrive at Liverpool.
“I’ve known it for a while. In my left ear is Pep Lijnders and in my right ear is Vitor Matos, telling me. I have loved him from the first days and didn’t need a lot of convincing,” he said.
“The thing is Conor showed up extremely well in pre-season, did extremely well at Bolton.
He comes back, looks top and does well in pre-season then wow out for four to five months.
“Thank God time could sort it. It will not get better but in that age group it gets better. It is a
joy to watch him since he comes back and all credit to the academy.”
Having watched the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Curtis Jones come through the
academy and develop in recent seasons, it is fantastic to see this crop of Liverpool
youngsters contribute towards pushing for trophies on four-fronts.
“Conor, Jarell Quansah, James McConnell, Bobby Clark it is all top,” said Klopp.
“Kaide Gordon coming back after a long long injury, Stefan Bajcetic still out these kinds of things it’s not cool though.
“We were counting on Stefan before the season because we knew how good he is, but then he cannot play which isn’t helpful, but the academy is doing an incredible job.”
