Bristol City has confirmed the signing of Liverpool winger, Ryan Kent on loan for the remainder of the season. Head coach, Lee Johnson was quoted, “He did very well at Barnsley last year and he’ll bring genuine speed, athleticism and ball control to our squad. We thank Liverpool for entrusting us with another top player’s development and I’m looking forward to welcoming him into the group.”
The 21-year-old has registered only six appearances for Freiburg in the last 6 months and had to be recalled by the Liverpool management. The entire purpose of the loan spell was to gain crucial first-team experience and not warm the benches while collecting a paycheck. Jurgen Klopp holds Kent to high regards and is well invested in his progress to take up a spot in the first team of Liverpool in the future.
Kent served the previous season on loan at Barnsley and registered 3 goals and 3 assists in 47 appearances for the clubs. He also signed a 5-year contract with Liverpool in the summer before moving to Germany. Although Klopp is a manager who promotes young talent, it was clear that Kent would have a hard time breaking into the first team this season.
Bristol City’s talent challenge took a huge blow after the side lost 5-0 to Aston Villa in their opening game of the year. They dropped to the 4th spot of the points table, two points behind Derby County from the automatic qualification spot.
They also bowed out of the League Cup after a 2-1 loss to Manchester City at the Etihad last night. Lee Johnson has fallen under great scrutiny after the lacklustre showing at Villa Park but is eager to bounce back to winning ways. However, a guaranteed promotion is hard to chase when you do not have much depth from the benches.
Kent’s arrival will definitely bolster the squad offensively. The Oldham-born midfielder has served England in the U19 and U20 sides with 8 appearances and 3 goals under his belt. But his loan spell has been a fruitless endeavour for both the player and the clubs and a move to a Championship side might be a good move. Klopp had initially intended for Kent to stay in his squad for this season, but the player wanted a move away to Germany to test himself rather than play for the U23 Liverpool team.
His scorching pace along with the ability to play on either side of the flanks will provide the Robins with the necessary width they require to stretch the opposition defence. If they do fail to fail to catch up to Derby County by the end of the season, a battle for promotion in the playoffs will require a bright spark like Kent to make all the difference.
