Bolton manager shares what Conor Bradley messaged him straight after scoring against Chelsea

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Liverpool youngster Conor Bradley has been basking in the glow of his first goal for the club for the past couple of days.

Bradley was brilliant against Chelsea on Wednesday, earning the praise of his manager. Not only did the 20-year-old slot home his debut goal for Liverpool, but he also bagged himself two assists as well.

For supporters of Bolton Wanderers, Bradley’s excellence won’t have come as a surprise. The Northern Irishman won the League One side’s player of the year award whilst on-loan last season.

His manager there, Ian Evatt, regularly praised Bradley during his year away. And speaking to The Times yesterday, Evatt shared his exchange with the right-back after his brilliant display at Anfield.

“I messaged Conor on Wednesday night after seeing his performance against Chelsea and just said how proud of him I was,” says the Bolton manager.

“He replied that he was grateful for the opportunity Bolton had given him and then added how there was more to come. Everyone at Bolton would agree with that.”

More to come from Bradley

It’s nice to hear that Bradley is still connected to the club which gave him his first real chance last season.

Although he was always highly rated back at Liverpool, his spell with Bolton clearly had a huge impact on Conor’s development. He needed games, and he got them.

So loved was he at the Toughsheet Community Stadium, that Klopp even revealed yesterday that he’d had to fend off Bolton fans whilst on holiday recently.

“A few weeks ago when we had a few days off and I was on holiday, some people from Bolton were there and they asked me if they can have Conor Bradley back and I said: ‘Too late!’,” the Reds boss told BBC Sport.

It isn’t impossible that Bradley will still find himself out on-loan next season. Much will depend on how the new manager sees the role of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

If Trent is still the main man at right-back, then maybe Bradley will need to go in search of more regular game time again.

However, if that is the case, then it won’t be at Bolton. Even if the Lancashire club are promoted back to the Championship this season, Liverpool’s No.84 should now be operating at a higher level.

As a result, a Premier League or perhaps an overseas spell would be the order of the day. That’s all for the future though, and the hope will be that Bradley stays and kicks on at Liverpool anyway.