Liverpool’s Ben Doak scored a fantastic individual goal to beat Rangers on Wednesday afternoon. The 16-year-old will have loved that one.
Liverpool Under 19s played out an incredible game against Rangers tonight. The Reds took the lead through Oakley Cannonier before giving up a penalty to let Rangers back in.
Melkamu Frauendorf then got his first of the season for 2-1, before the inevitable Cannonier picked up a second for himself. The only problem there was that the striker injured himself celebrating his brace and had to go off.
The second half was far from routine. Lee Jonas was then sent off for the Reds and Rangers capitalised. They quickly found a goal for 3-2 and then a wicked bounce off the post handed the Scots a tap-in as an equaliser.
And then Ben Doak happened. The former Celtic academy product had already played a key role in both Cannonier goals. This, however, was something special.
Doak picked up the ball by the corner flag with his back to goal and a defender on him. He weaved left, then right, then left, then right, before turning and running at his man. He went past him, past the two covering defenders, and then curled the ball into the far corner.
A ‘wonder goal’, said Neil Mellor after the game on commentary for LFCTV. It truly was.
Ben Doak goal vs Rangers
For a former Celtic player, that will have meant a lot to Doak. It was an incredible goal, worthy of winning any game. As it was, he kept Liverpool’s 100% record alive in the UEFA Youth League.
And we can’t undersell just how good Doak was this afternoon. His pass to send Cannonier through for Liverpool’s third was a highlight on its own. His work in stoppage time to keep the ball from three defenders and win a free-kick just about sealed the points.
Cannonier undoubtedly took headlines here as he now has seven goals in four Youth League games. But Doak showed that he’s just as big a talent.
Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou called Doak ‘fantastic’ via The Scotsman before his move to Liverpool. He wasn’t kidding.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
