Liverpool will be expected to comfortably dispatch Barnsley in the FA Cup third-round clash at Anfield on Monday evening.
Although Arne Slot is likely to heavily rotate his team for the fixture, anything but a Reds win against the League One side would be a real surprise.
Nevertheless, it is set to be a big occasion for the away team, and although their chances of progression are slim, they will travel with the mindset of causing an upset.
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For one Barnsley player in particular, this match is personal. Midfielder Adam Phillips spent eight years in the Liverpool academy before leaving as a 19-year-old.
As he progressed through the ranks at Liverpool, Phillips was even once tipped as a potentially even bigger talent than former youth team colleague Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Adam Phillips was backed to impress Jurgen Klopp
When Jurgen Klopp took over at Liverpool in October 2015, the Reds academy was not in the best condition.
It had been years since a young player had come through the ranks to make a proper impression in the first-team, with far too many fizzling out to nothing.
There was one real standout on the cusp of the first-team, however: Alexander-Arnold, who would go on to lift two Premier League’s and a Champions League with the Reds.
Back in October 2015, though, the right-back was not named as one of the players who would likely have caught Klopp’s eye as he watched the young Reds. As The Mirror reported at the time, the German was spotted taking in an U18s match just days after his appointment at Liverpool.
Speculating on the players who Klopp was sure to have been ‘impressed’ by, Phillips was the very first player named. Interestingly, despite Alexander-Arnold’s presence in the team at the time, it was claimed that the midfielder took ‘most of the free-kicks and almost all the corners’ for the U18s.
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Also described as possessing a ‘superb’ passing range, Phillips was tipped to impress Klopp alongside Yan Dhanda, Ovie Ejaria, Kane Lewis and Rhian Brewster. Sadly, he never made the breakthrough at Liverpool, going on to Norwich, Burnley and finally Barnsley where he has become an important player.
Second former Liverpool youngster could play
As well as Phillips, Barnsley have a second former Liverpool academy player who will be hoping to cause an upset at Anfield on Monday.
Though he is eight years younger than his Tykes teammate, Vimal Yoganathan’s time at Liverpool did overlap with Phillips.
Joining as an eight-year-old in 2014, Yoganathan ultimately spent seven years with the Reds before leaving to join the youth setup at Barnsley in 2021.
After breaking through into the first-team as a 17-year-old, the Welshman spent last term on loan with Oldham before assuming a bigger role at Oakwell this season.
Already wary of a cup upset, Liverpool should be paying special attention to these two former youngsters who will be extra motivated to finally play in front of a full Anfield.
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