Liverpool had a Saturday to forget at Anfield, but one youngster who’s coming to Merseyside this summer had a weekend to remember.
Towards the end of the January transfer window, the Reds agreed a deal to sign Ifeanyi Ndukwe, a teenage centre-back playing with Austria Vienna who turned 18 in early March.
On Sunday, the youngster was handed a senior debut for his current club, and it came in a derby win over capital rivals Rapid in the penultimate matchday of the Austrian Bundesliga.
The Liverpool-bound defender had a mere stoppage-time cameo, but if he’s given another runout next week, he could have a significant say in where the league title ends up.
That’s because Austria Vienna play host to table-toppers LASK (who the Reds faced in the 2023/24 Europa League), who hold a two-point advantage over Sturm Graz going into the final day of the division.
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Ndukwe barely had any time to make an impression on his senior debut, considering how late he came on, but he was still on the pitch for long enough to win the one duel that he contested and get a touch of the ball (Sofascore).
His involvement may been minimal, but even those little moments will have settled him and give him something to take into his next game, whether that’s for his current club to round off their season, or Liverpool in the summer.
His first campaign on Merseyside will realistically be spent with Rob Page’s under-21 side, but it’s plausible that Arne Slot (assuming he’s still in the job by then) could bring him with the senior squad for the pre-season tour to the United States.
There could be several big names missing for those games if they go deep into the World Cup, and exposing Ndukwe to a first-team environment (and possibly handing him minutes in friendly fixtures) could help his development significantly.
Congratulations to the 18-year-old on his senior debut yesterday, and here’s hoping he’ll become a stalwart for Liverpool in the years to come!
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