'Clyne wanted to carry on - he was a great example'
Nathaniel Clyne was an example to follow as the defender completed 90 minutes on his return to action for Liverpool U23s on Sunday.
The right-back made a first appearance at any level since July at St George’s Park, where Neil Critchley’s side claimed a 4-0 win over Stoke City in the Premier League Cup.
Fellow first-teamers Joe Gomez and Dominic Solanke played the full game too, with the latter’s hat-trick inspiring a result that sent the young Reds into the tournament’s knockout stages.
Critchley revealed how Clyne was determined to push beyond the originally planned length of his outing – and, in the process, educated his younger teammates.
“He has not played for seven months and the plan was to see how long he would go for. He kept putting his thumb up and saying he was OK,” Critchley told Liverpoolfc.com.
“He obviously wanted to see out the 90 minutes, which was great for him. I thought he was a great example to our players in the way he managed himself during the game, as well as Joe Gomez.
“And Dom with his goals as well, it was brilliant for our younger lads.”
Critchley also discussed the overall display – with added gloss coming from Bobby Adekanye’s solo strike six minutes from time – plus Solanke’s treble, the class of Gomez and more in his post-match assessment.
Read on for his thoughts in full…
On the U23s’ performance…
“We played some really good football and scored some terrific goals. We kept a clean sheet; other than one or two chances they had, we controlled the game. It was a really good performance all round and I was delighted with the boys.”
On Solanke’s hat-trick…
“They were terrific goals, proper striker’s goals. You could see the confidence grow in him after his first goal with the right foot. His second goal with his left foot was a fantastic finish across the goalkeeper. And then a lovely tap-in at the end. All three – Joe, Nathaniel and Dom – were great examples for our players with the way they set the tone. It is great to see Nathaniel back and I’m sure all three will play a big part for the first team before the end of the season.”
On the influence of Gomez…
“He is a top player, an international player. He has had a little period out and he’ll be itching to get back in and compete for the first team. They have got a clean bill of health and some competition for places now.”
LFCTV GO: Watch highlights from the 4-0 win
On Adekanye’s impact off the bench…
“He was terrific against Manchester United [for the U19s last week], a real handful. That was our message to him when he came on: the game will open up and you’ll get an opportunity one-v-one. What he normally does when he comes inside – which is what he did against Manchester United a little bit – is not always maybe achieve what he should achieve in front of goal. If he can start finishing like that then at the end of his really promising, threatening runs he’ll add goals to his game – and then he’ll become a real, real player.”
On the late red card shown to Herbie Kane…
“He was excellent [before that] and he has been excellent. But that wasn’t a good moment. I’m not happy about that. He’s going to have to [learn from that]. He’s the captain of the team for a reason. We’ll reflect on that.”
On Wednesday’s Premier League International Cup tie with FC Porto…
“It’s a great period for us in the next two or three weeks, there are some big and important games. We have spoken about the next few weeks and how important is it that the boys get used to playing, recovering and looking after themselves in between games. It’s really going to be a test for us mentally and physically, a real challenge. Porto will be a big challenge because they won the competition last season. We’re really looking forward to that game.”