Liverpool have a number of superb players coming through the academy ranks.
One such player has been likened to Anfield attacking greats Fernando Torres, Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen.
The player in question is Layton Stewart, who now has eight goals from 10 Premier League 2 outings this term.
The 20-year-old is Liverpool born-and-bred, and joined the Anfield academy aged seven.
Stewart has risen through the ranks at Liverpool and graduated to the Under-21s (previously Under-23s) in 2021.
Just a few months prior, the young forward had signed his first professional contract with the Reds.
Stewart has endured a difficult time in recent years due to fitness issues.
The 20-year-old was previously out for 13 months with an ACL injury.
Stewart has also missed a significant part of the current campaign.
However, the youngster is now on the comeback trail, and his tally remains impressive.
‘Knows where the goal is’
On Monday, Stewart came off the bench to score the only goal in the Premier League 2 win over Arsenal Under-21s.
A week earlier, he also scored after coming on as a substitute in the 7-1 hammering of Leicester Under-21s.
“It was a great win for us and I was proud of the lads, especially after going down to 10 men,” Reds Under-21s boss Barry Lewtas told Liverpoolfc.com.
“The lads stuck together and, in the end, we did what we had to do.”
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Lewtas then sung Stewart’s praises, adding: “It was great to see Layton get the winner for us.
“We had planned to get him on the pitch a little bit earlier but the red card disrupted that.
“It was a fantastic goal, a lovely pass, great movement from Layton and he stuck it away.
“We are trying to get him back up to full speed again after he picked up a knock before Christmas.
“But he is someone who knows where the goal is and he is a real threat for us.”
‘Burst of pace and calculated finish’
Stewart is incredibly highly rated at the Liverpool academy, as The Athletic wrote in October 2020.
‘Fernando Torres. That’s the name which keeps popping up when you ask people about Liverpool’s academy starlet Layton Stewart.
‘It’s not just Torres, either. The Huyton-born teenager’s style of play has also been likened to that of Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen.
‘Yes, Stewart’s style of play does give off throwback tones of those former Liverpool strikers. There is no getting away from that.
‘He has that same ability to float on the shoulders of defenders before a burst of pace and calculated finish.’
It’s a shame Stewart has experienced so many setbacks, but hopefully he’s past the worst of it and can finally get on with his career.
If he continues as he’s been doing, surely it won’t be long before he becomes a first-team regular at Anfield.
In other news, Paul Scholes and Michael Owen slam Everton defender Michael Keane
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