Steven Gerrard’s Liverpool U19 side defeated Sevilla 4-0 in the UEFA Youth League.
The win secured Liverpool’s place in the knockout stages of the competition as they moved onto 12 points in Group E.
Liverpool went ahead after just 25 seconds thanks to Liam Miller who pounced on a terrible back pass from Sevilla’s Rios, who under hit the ball whilst under pressure from Rhian Brewster.
George Johnson’s amazing tackle in the 17th minute kept Liverpool in the lead as Sevilla broke in numbers and the Reds spent the next few minutes weathering a bit of a storm as the home side looked to get back into the game.
Sevilla continued to push for an equaliser but Liverpool’s back three of Johnston, Conor Masterson and Rhys Williams defended really well as Gerrard gave them plenty of verbal encouragement from the sidelines.
Liverpool’s captain Ben Woodburn was also happy to roll up his sleeves to help the defensive effort as he chased down a dangerous attack from the home side.
Curtis Jones went into the book after a bit of a scuffle with Rios as things got a bit heated under the Spanish sun, but Liverpool did well to keep their heads and eventually got their rewards
Herbie Kane put the Reds 2-0 up just before the break with a long-range free-kick which he earned himself. In truth, he got a bit of luck as the ball took a huge deflection off the wall which took it away from the goalkeeper and into the corner.
Brewster made it 3-0 with an excellent strike after an Adam Lewis cross and substitute Bobby Adekanye went through to finish at 4-0 late on.
Here’s how the youngsters rated in the game:
Kamil Grabara – 6
Didn’t need to do a lot as his defenders were magnificent.
Conor Masterson – 8
Defended very well, making plenty of tackles and clearances.
Rhys Williams – 8
Like Masterson, he made tackles and blocks aplenty.
George Johnston – 8
Made a great sliding challenge to keep the score at 1-0 and looked solid throughout.
Rafa Camacho – 7
Was disciplined in defence from his wing-back role but also got forward when he could and was a bit unlucky to be penalised for a handball when he looked set to get a shot away.
Herbie Kane – 8
Got a bit lucky with the free kick, but he did well to draw the foul. Made a few crucial blocks at the end of the half. He had an excellent game
Ben Woodburn – 7
Showed his willingness to defend with some excellent tracking back.
Curtis Jones – 7
Was happy to battle in the midfield against a tough Sevilla outfit
Adam Lewis – 9
Put in a great cross in to set up the third goal and had a great game all round. My Man of the Match
Liam Millar – 7
Finished well inside 30 seconds as the ball was put on a plate for him and nearly got a second but the ball to him was a fraction too heavy.
Rhian Brewster – 8
Forced the first goal with some good pressure and his volley was exceptional.
SUB: Bobby Adekanye – 8
Was only on the field for half an hour but made a great impact and took his goal really well.
