Brendan Rodgers might be long gone from Liverpool but the Merseyside club certainly occupy a special place in the Northern Irishman’s heart. That is perhaps why he cannot ignore the temptation to go back to his former club and try to sign some of the lesser known names, players Liverpool can consider loaning out.
The Derry Journal claim that Rodgers is looking to sign Liverpool starlet Joe Gomez on loan once again in January after he tried and failed to land him in the summer. The same report claims that Premier League’s rising side Bournemouth are also in the race for the former Charlton Athletic stopper which means that it won’t be a straight-forward task from Rodgers to land his man.
Rodgers was the manager who signed the promising young defender from Charlton during his time at Liverpool. It was his last transfer window in charge of the Reds and at first, it was thought that Gomez was brought in for the future. However, Rodgers showed immense trust in the youngster by throwing him directly to the starting XI. Even though he is naturally a central defender, Rodgers used him at left-back ahead of error-prone Alberto Moreno and Gomez wowed the fans in his first few outings.
Just when Gomez started establishing himself as a regular for Liverpool, a severe anterior cruciate ligament injury prematurely ended his season. Rodgers also lost his job and then came Klopp. Gomez recovered from his injury troubles just two months back and got his first first-team action after more than one year against Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup on Sunday.
It is quite clear that Klopp also regards Gomez very highly and he is easily in his long-term plans but what about his immediate future? There is no place for him in Liverpool’s first-team at the moment and the 19-year-old is in certain need for regular football. Gomez knows Rodgers well and the same goes for Rodgers. If he joins Celtic on a short-term loan, he will definitely come back to Liverpool as a player who is ready to play week in week out for the Reds.
Gomez is more of a ball-playing defender, exactly what Klopp wants. He could be a huge success at Liverpool under the German boss. Liverpool will also benefit highly from the experience one of their best young players gets on loan while playing under their former boss who shares a similar style of management. This will be a deal that serves all parties well.
