Although it hasn’t always been the case for the Reds, Conor Bradley has profited from his loan transfer away from Liverpool.
Previously, this choice would almost always mean the end of a young Liverpool player’s career before it had begun.
Conor Bradley, though, is hoping that he is only the most recent illustration of a small trend change that the Reds are now beginning to benefit from.
Following up his impressive cameo from the bench in the FA Cup third round victory against Arsenal three days prior,
Bradley won man of the match in last Wednesday’s League Cup semi-final first-leg victory over Fulham.
The 20-year-old Northern Ireland international was making just his fifth appearance for Liverpool,
filling in for Trent Alexander-Arnold in the inverted right-back post.
Had he not missed the first four months of the season due to a back ailment, that total would have been far higher.
Bradley, however, was no stranger to playing in high-stress matches; he had played for Bolton Wanderers the previous season,
where they advanced to the League One play-off semifinals and won the EFL Trophy after defeating Plymouth Argyle 4-0 at Wembley in front of nearly 80,000 fans.
Bradley was a right wing-back who made 53 appearances with the Trotters, all but five of them were as a starter.
He scored seven goals and provided six assists in those games.
His time on loan at Liverpool helped him be ready for being thrust into the deep end.
Though the Reds haven’t always been that way, there’s further proof that short-term actions pay off.
In fact, after gaining experience during loan stints elsewhere, Harvey Elliott and Jarell Quansah,
both of whom have made many appearances this season, became principally first-team squad members.
Consistent action at their various loan teams was something else that all three of them profited from.
Elliott was nominated for and lost out on the Young Player of the Year award, which was won by Michael Olise,
who is currently with Crystal Palace after playing 41 games for Blackburn Rovers in the Championship.
Quansah, on the other hand, played the majority of last season as Bristol Rovers’ starting center of defense in League One.
Making the appropriate financial move is essential. Determining what is best for a player is a difficult task,
and things don’t always go according to plan for a number of reasons.
The main issue is first-team minutes; without these, temporary transfers have to be questioned.
Liverpool called up seven players from their loans in January of last year. There have been six so far this month.
After a successful season in the division with Blackburn, Tyler Morton,
who is making an impression at Championship club Hull City, will be hoping he can continue along Elliott’s specific path.
Although loan agreements sometimes result in big transfers elsewhere, as seen in the situations of Ryan Kent, Harry Wilson, and Neco Williams, they have generally not been a guarantee of future success at Liverpool.
A few of the winners, including Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi, were seasoned athletes.
But when it comes to young people, there haven’t been many qualified triumphs until Elliott. After a stint with Leicester City, Jay Spearing went on to win the League Cup and represent Liverpool in the FA Cup final.
While Stephen Warnock went on to play for England, Martin Kelly and Jonjo Shelvey transferred to other Premier League teams.
Bradley will therefore try to follow in the footsteps of some of his younger teammates and contribute to Liverpool’s multifaceted transition into a new age.
