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[Eagle]

Completely missed this signing last year but I was so impressed with him in pre-season. He gave opposition left backs a torrid time and showed some excellent movement to get into goal scoring positions. Would have no issue with him lining up in the League and FA cup sides despite his tender age.

'We’ve got a plan for him' - Liverpool unleash £3m transfer after seeing off Man United interest

As full debuts go, it could hardly have gone better for Kaide Gordon.

After the best part of a month rubbing shoulders with Mohamed Salah and co with the Liverpool first team out in Austria, the teenager was given his maiden Premier League 2 start on Monday night.

Against none other than local rivals Everton, Gordon starred, turning in a Man of the Match display that was capped off with a dipping 25-yard effort in the 3-1 win in Southport.

Gordon's rise since he joined the club in January has been sharp.

After making his senior debut for Derby in the Championship back in December, Liverpool swooped, sealing a £3million deal to bring one of the most talented teens in the country to the Kirkby Academy.

The Reds fended off interest from both Manchester United and Tottenham to make sure he joined the thriving academy ranks in Kirkby at the start of the year.

"Kaide is a fantastic player and he has got a lot of potential," said Wayne Rooney at the time, with the Derby boss desperate to cling on to Gordon's sizable talent.

One of four footballing brothers, Kaide is travelling the same road as his siblings Keldon, Chase and Kellan in their hopes of making a career in the game.

Anyone at the Pure Stadium on Monday night would suggest that he is on the right path towards that just now.

Despite being the youngest in the side, Gordon was head and shoulders above, causing Everton untold problems off the right side of the front three.

The Blues' attempts to kick Gordon out of his stride did little but seemingly get the winger angry as he turned in a superb performance to help Barry Lewtas' side to three points in the first mini Merseyside derby of the campaign.

“Kaide is only a young boy but he’s done ever so well since he joined the club," said Lewtas after the game.

"He’s got a lovely knack for scoring goals, a real eye for goal. You can see the big potential, he’s good. He caused the left-back all kinds of problems."

Name-checked by none other than Virgil van Dijk during the club's summer tour of Austria, Gordon is understood to have caught the eye of several key figures at Anfield while out in the Saalfelden and Tirol camps.

So much so, in fact, that Gordon was kept on for the third leg in Evian when six of his colleagues were sent back to Merseyside at the beginning of August.

“Kaide Gordon, who is 16 years old, is coming out of his shell, he is training well and is a great talent," said Van Dijk at the time.

The teen was also given advice from Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson over the summer while he continued to impress the likes of Klopp and his assistants with his positioning and understanding of Liverpool's press.

“There are always bits you can improve on, maybe some tactical parts he can still adapt to," Lewtas adds.

"Technically we can still improve some of the key attributes he has already too."

Anfield insiders have already spoken about how Gordon will be able to fill in for the departing Xherdan Shaqiri in cup competitions this season, such has been his rise.

While a Premier League debut may be some time away yet, the fact that Gordon may feature as a senior Reds player this term speaks to how much of an impression he made on Klopp during the last few weeks.

Perhaps one notable pitfall Gordon will be wary of stepping into was evidenced by the identity of his opposite winger on Monday as he lined up in a front alongside Max Woltman and Sheyi Ojo.

That Ojo, who is eight years Gordon's senior, is still trying to find a place in the game is proof that not every youngster immediately sails to the top.

A small cautionary tale, perhaps.

For now, though, there appears to be a proactive programme in place to keep Gordon's feet on the ground while he continues to develop and improve in the youth ranks.

Lewtas adds: “We’ve got a plan for him, from an academy point of view and a first-team point of view. We certainly don’t want to hold him back.

"We want him to keep playing at the pace he’s playing, and improving at the rate he’s improving.

"We want to keep turning the screw on him, and hopefully this season he’s a match-winner for us.

“He’s a really good kid, he's very mature for a 16-year-old. He’s not played many 90 minutes in pre-season, and that’s a big thing for us.

“There’s a lovely innocence and freedom to him. It’s our job to make sure we give him the ball as often as possible.

"But he does play with a real maturity, he makes good movements in behind, he understands when to go one-v-one, and off the ball he works really hard, but with intelligence in the way he presses and tracks.

“He’s only young, and you see that off the pitch. He fits in. He has a lovely way about him, and he takes no prisoners with the ball on the pitch. We have to keep working on that because the games will get tougher.

“I’ve told him he could be a marked man at times. Maybe that’s something he needs to learn, how to avoid those [bad] tackles!

“But he doesn’t have any fear. He keeps running at players. It didn’t knock him. I don't think anybody is going to kick him off the park - you’re going to have to come up with a better plan than that!"

Gordon is already being likened to another young player making his name at Anfield right now in Harvey Elliott.

"He’s good!" laughed Tom Clayton after Monday's win, having clearly enjoyed what his younger colleague had served up.

"Sometimes you see players getting media attention and they come in and you think ‘he’s not that good’, but Kaide is.

“You can judge people quite quickly, whether it’s passing or first touch. It was the same with Harvey as it was with Kaide. It was ‘wow he’s got something special’.

“I try and stay away from him in training!

"It’s tough, because he’s got that piece of magic in him. I’m just glad I don’t have to play against him every weekend."

Gordon has not made it yet, but there can be little faulting his fledgling days in Liverpool red.

[ycsatbjywtbiastkamb]

Yeah the lad looks an exciting prospect, potentially a very good player.

[Eagle]

Gordon looked a promising talent and it's unfortunate he's had such a horrid time with this problem. The below update is from February and hopefully he's made more progress since. Doesn't turn 19 until October so plenty of time to get his career back on track. Hopefully be ready for pre-season and eying up game time in the Europa League.

Kaide Gordon injury update as Liverpool youngster suffers 'tough' recovery

Liverpool teenager Kaide Gordon has been absent for more than a year due to a pelvic problem

Liverpool are "happy" with the progress of Kaide Gordon as the teenager continues his recovery after more than a year on the sidelines.

Gordon, who made his first-team breakthrough for the Reds in impressive fashion last season, hasn't featured at any level since the 3-0 Premier League 2 defeat at Leeds United on February 7 last year.

The 18-year-old suffered a pelvic problem linked to his physical growth and has for some time been following a specialised training programme aimed at bolstering his fitness.

Gordon was back running on the pitch at Kirkby in December but has still to take part in regular ball work with Liverpool mindful of not overburdening the youngster.

And under-21s boss Barry Lewtas has offered an update on Gordon's ongoing rehabilitation with the Reds reluctant to set a target for a possible comeback.

"It's tough for him," said Lewtas to the ECHO. "He is still loading up and building up. We will see where he goes. We still see him every day. Sometimes in rehab you have to build people up slowly, and once you do get going you have to speed things up.

"We are not putting any real pressure on him. In long rehabilitations, there can be setbacks. Tom Hill and Layton Stewart both had setbacks from their injuries, for example.

"You have to be really careful with Kaide that we don't put any false promises on anything. At the minute we are happy with where we are with him, and he is happy in terms of how he is progressing.

"It will be great to have him back in the fold and hopefully we can do soon enough."

Liverpool have been keen to make sure Gordon remains involved with the senior squad, with the teenager travelling to Austria for the pre-season training camp and later to Dubai for the mid-season warm-weather camp during the World Cup break. He was last photographed in December running on the pitch at the AXA Training Centre while working alongside rehabilitation fitness coach Dave Rydings.

Gordon, signed from Derby County in February 2021 in a deal that could be worth £3million, made his senior Liverpool debut aged just 16 in the League Cup win at Norwich City in September 2021.

He went on to become the second-youngest scorer in the club's history when netting on his FA Cup bow against Shrewsbury Town in January 2022 and then made his Premier League debut from the bench against Brentford the following week, before becoming the youngest Liverpool player to start a major semi-final when featuring in the League Cup second leg win at Arsenal.

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/f ... l-26310876