Underage coach says Liverpool have a ‘first class’ gem in their academy with ‘X factor about him’
A young prospect named Trent with a double-barrelled surname emerging through Liverpool’s academy is nothing new, and that scenario is playing out once again.
While a certain Alexander-Arnold has climbed the ladder to become vice-captain of the first team, Trent Kone-Doherty is making waves at underage level.
The 17-year-old signed his first professional contract at Anfield this week, and his rise comes as no surprise to one of his former coaches.
Gerard Boyle, who coached the Irish prodigy at under-17 level for Derry City, spoke to the Liverpool Echo about the fledgling talent, whose attitude came in for particularly lofty praise.
He said: “Trent always possessed excellent close control and could manipulate the ball very well with both feet. He had incredible acceleration and deceleration. Trent enjoyed running at defenders with the ball and could glide by them before delivering a good pass or shooting.
“His attitude was first class, so well-mannered and so receptive to receiving information and advice. He was liked by all his teammates. He never stopped smiling.”
Boyle added of Kone-Doherty: “I always thought he had an X factor about him that would ensure he could impress at any level. He was also always humble and hard working, so that was always going to stand him in good stead.”
Prior to today, the 17-year-old had scored five goals in as many matches in the Under-18 Premier League this season, along with one goal in three appearances at under-21 level in Premier League 2 (Transfermarkt).
Even with that in mind, perhaps the biggest sign of how well he’s progressing at Liverpool was his inclusion among the first-team squad in training ahead of the Merseyside derby against Everton in October (Liverpool Echo).
A senior debut still awaits, but Jurgen Klopp has plenty of previous for giving youth its fling at Anfield, so we wouldn’t back against Kone-Doherty featuring on the occasional matchday between now and the end of the campaign.
If the Reds can wrap up top spot in their Europa League group with a game to spare, the teenager might even get the nod for the trip to Belgium to face Union Saint-Gilloise next month in our final match at this phase of the competition.
For now, he simply needs to keep doing what he’s been doing all along and there’s a good chance the call will come from Klopp, especially given Boyle’s glowing comments about the 17-year-old’s humble mentality and desire for constant improvement.
In time, the mention of ‘Trent’ when talking about Liverpool could be met with the reply of ‘Which one?’.
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