Liverpool’s youngest ever goalscorer, Ben Woodburn, is reportedly prepared to drop down to League One in a bid to prove himself after failing to find his feet in the Championship last season, according to Wales Online.
Welsh international Woodburn perhaps hasn’t quite hit the heights expected of him when he made his Premier League debut aged 17 years 1 month and 11 days, and he’s now looking for a temporary way out of the club to get his once promising career back on track.
Indeed, according to the report, he’s ready to ‘kickstart’ his career and is said to be desperate for more playing time next season.
Woodburn hasn’t tasted first-team football since November last year after a disappointing loan spell with recently promoted Sheffield United, for whom he registered just 156 minutes of action, as per WhoScored.
Having broken Michael Owen’s record as the club’s youngest goalscorer when he netted against Leeds United in the League Cup back in 2016, he was nominated for Tuttosport’s prestigious Golden Boy Award a year later, though such little game time at Bramall Lane saw him return to Anfield in January.
Scant few opportunities were available with the Blades last season and, while former manager Chris Wilder did describe him as a ‘talent’ (per the Liverpool Echo in October), his experience in the Steel City was obviously far from ideal.
The Championship is still believed to be his most likely destination for the upcoming 2019-20 campaign. Hull City – the former home of impressive Liverpool youngster Harry Wilson – have been mentioned as one of a few admirers, although a transfer abroad or a drop into the third tier has not been ruled out, according to Wales Online.
Indeed, with countryman Wilson impressing at Derby County last season and earning a chance to prove himself during the upcoming pre-season tour, there is a precedent there for Woodburn. If all parties can find a move that works for the forward, perhaps he can work his way into Jurgen Klopp’s thinking in the not-so-distant future.
Liverpool fans, do you think Woodburn has got what it takes to make it? Will League One be the making of him? Let us know in the comments below…
