Scotland U17 coach Brian McLaughlin has claimed that Liverpool youngster Ben Doak is an incredible dribbler.
Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, McLaughlin detailed Doak’s journey to Liverpool last summer. Describing the 16-year-old’s playing style, the coach said that he’s the type of winger who loves to take players on.
“Wherever he is on the pitch he’s [Doak] different, he’s just different. He wants to take players on, he wants to be really, really positive and as long as he keeps that character and reminds himself of what his major strengths are, we’ll try to encourage him,” he said. “He’s a different type of player to anybody who has come through recently, his athleticism alone is different.
“The thing that struck me about Ben when he joined the programme is how he came with an ambition that he wanted to achieve something big. He then went into our youth squads and went through the same process that Billy Gilmour’s gone through. Ben looked at what we were doing, what we were trying to do and how we wanted to play and he just loved it.
“He just wanted to learn more information, he wanted to face the demands that these top European teams were going to give him, so he had all the same characteristics as Billy.”
Doak making himself known at Anfield
Doak is generating plenty of excitement amongst Liverpool fans this season. The teenager seems like he’s in a real hurry to make things happen at Anfield.
Already progressing from the U18s to the U21s, he’s also jumped age groups for the national team. Although McLaughlin worked with him at U17 level, he’s now with the Scotland U21s, too.
It’s still early days, and Liverpool shouldn’t necessarily rush him through. But Doak seems to be making the difference every week.
Keep this kind of eye-catching form going, and perhaps he could be in-line for senior call-up before too long.
Liverpool play Derby County in the Carabao Cup a week on Wednesday. If Jurgen Klopp decides to dip into the academy for that game, Doak would surely be best placed to benefit.
If not, you get the feeling that it’s only a matter of time before the former Celtic prospect is training with the first team.
The Reds did brilliant work picking up Doak this summer. He has progressed quicker than anyone anticipated and doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon. Exciting times.
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