George Johnston’s move from Liverpool to Feyenoord is an ideal chance for him to shine in a top-flight league.
The young centre-back will join the Eredivisie side on a permanent deal, after former hero Dirk Kuyt “called the Reds for a recommendation”, according to Goal’s Neil Jones on Twitter.
Liverpool will receive a “small fee” for Johnston, who has never made an appearance for the first team.
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It is a bold decision by the 20-year-old, but also an intelligent one, as he looks to kick on in his career.
Johnston could easily have stayed at Liverpool and continued to play for the under-23s, but he deserves praise for taking a gamble.
It was clear that first team opportunities were going to be extremely limited, considering the competition in centre-back areas.
The quartet of Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren are all key squad players, none of whom Johnston was going to usurp any time soon.
On top of that, Ki-Jana Hoever and Sepp van den Berg are both greater prospects than the Scot, making his chances of making the grade at Liverpool even more slim.
A new experience in a different country can only be healthy for Johnston, who has performed so consistently in the Reds’ academy.
The quality of the Eredivisie isn’t as strong as the Premier League, giving him more leeway to improve, also under less scrutiny.
