There’s a bit of a trap we fall into as fans when we talk about “good squad players”. We say it like it’s a neat little job title. Truth is, it only works if the manager actually gives the lad enough football to stay sharp.
The point here isn’t that he has to start every week. It’s that after two seasons with a serious lack of minutes, he needs a proper run of games somewhere along the line. Not one start, two cameos, then back to the bench for a month. Rhythm matters, confidence matters, and match fitness isn’t something you maintain on good intentions.
Impact sub is a real role, but it has limits
To be fair, he’s shown plenty of times he can change the feel of a match off the bench. Some players are brilliant at that. They come on, they play with urgency, they keep the tempo high, they’re brave on the ball. That’s valuable. Every title-winning side has lads like that.
But even the best impact subs need minutes across a season. If you’re only getting scraps, you start forcing it. Touch gets heavy, decisions get rushed, and suddenly the narrative flips from “useful option” to “he’s finished”, which is usually lazy nonsense.
Minutes are the deal, not the label
If he’s happy being a squad player, fine. If he loves the club and can accept that role, even better. But it can’t be a charity badge. It has to come with a realistic workload. Something like 1,500 to 2,000 minutes a season isn’t outrageous for a trusted rotation option. That’s the difference between being part of the group and being a name on the teamsheet list.
That’s why the frustration about last season’s usage makes sense. You can’t complain about needing depth, then barely tap into it, then act surprised when a player looks a yard off it when he finally gets a go.
The Villa situation feels messy
The Villa part of it just sounds like it’s been badly handled all round, and the player’s the one stuck in the middle. The buy clause angle is interesting too: sometimes that sort of clause changes how a club treats a loan. If there’s a big decision and big money attached, it can make managers cautious and transactional rather than just playing the fella because he helps them win.
And with PSR hanging over clubs, you can see why a manager might hesitate if he’s not convinced he wants to commit. But that doesn’t make it any better for the player, and it definitely doesn’t help Liverpool either.
If Liverpool want him as a genuine part of the squad, then the simple answer is the hard one: give him proper minutes, let him build form, and stop pretending sharpness comes from the warm-up line.
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