Another famous son has scored a decisive goal for Liverpool under-18s, with Jayden Danns notching the winner to keep the young Reds in the hunt for a trophy.
Marc Bridge-Wilkinson’s side are currently in Northern Ireland competing in the SuperCupNI, formerly the NI Milk Cup, as part of their pre-season preparations.
The young Reds drew their opening match 1-1 with Valencia, with Keyrol Figueroa (son of former Wigan player Maynor Figueroa) scoring a rocket to get an early point on the board in the four-team round-robin tournament.
Their second match saw Liverpool face Man United, who had lost their opening game, and there was only one goal in it on Wednesday evening.
Danns, son of ex-Liverpool schoolboy and Football League journeyman Neil Danns, was responsible as his impressive form in front of goal continued.
The 17-year-old scored just five minutes before halftime with a low finish, reward for Liverpool’s harrying which saw United make a mistake playing out from the back.
It is the fourth goal of an impressive pre-season for the youngster, standing up against both youth and senior opposition.
Much like the first match, there were vital interventions needed by Liverpool’s goalkeeper, this time Kornel Misciur – who arrived from Hull in March.
? Liverpool spending time with the fans at Coleraine Showgrounds following their 1-0 win over Manchester United@LFC | @ManUtd | @presseyephoto | #lfc | #mufc pic.twitter.com/Iz5LZRbHd8
— SuperCupNI ??? (@SuperCupNI) July 26, 2023
Trent Kone-Doherty made an appearance off the bench and proved a nuisance on the left wing, the 17-year-old was unlucky not to extend the lead and extinguish any lingering United hopes.
The final whistle would do that, however, as Liverpool notched a 1-0 win to remain unbeaten in the tournament.
They have one final game remaining against Hertha on Friday, if they better the result of Valencia – who meet United – or win by a greater margin, they will be crowned SuperCupNI victors. Plenty to play for, then!
The last time the Reds won was in 1988, with Steve McManaman the star at under-16s level.
Liverpool U18s: Misciur; Davidson, Gyimah, Pitt, Furnell-Gill; Pinnington, Morrison (Pennington 62′), Bradshaw (Kone-Doherty 56′); Ahmed, Danns, Figueroa (Esdaille 80′)
Subs not used: Morana, Wellity, Osborne, Kelly
