Ex-England international Alan Shearer gushed over Curtis Jones’ rise in the first-team ranks at Anfield, with the 19-year-old midfielder staking a regular spot in Jurgen Klopp’s starting XI following long-term injuries to senior players.
Jones has developed into a much more experienced option in the centre of the park for the Merseysiders, and despite coming through the ranks only in the backend of the 2019-20 season, the midfielder looks set for a highly promising role for his boyhood side.
Special, @curtisjr_10 🤩💫 pic.twitter.com/DUX8zIt9A3
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 18, 2020
The teenager’s recent showings have invited heaps of praise for him, and Newcastle United icon Alan Shearer joined the Scouser’s fanbase while speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live as Shearer made note of Jones’ brilliant confidence and composure whilst on the pitch.
“I thought he was absolutely sensational. When you consider who he was up against – Hojbjerg and Sissoko have been brilliant for Spurs this season – his confidence was superb.
“His willingness and eagerness to try things, his flicks and tricks and passes. His driving forward and energy was magnificent. So, all in all, he wasn’t far away from being my man of the match.
“He’s 19, isn’t he? The other youngster in the team, Rhys Williams, is 19 as well and I thought both of them showed great maturity in how they handled the situation.
“They weren’t overawed at all, it didn’t stop them from trying one or two things and having the belief and confidence to do that.
“If you had just come in and were watching that game for the first time, without knowing who they were, you’d have thought these boys would have been around for years.”
Jurgen Klopp had chosen to award some much-needed rest to Jones for the weekend game away at Crystal Palace as Naby Keita came into the XI for the Reds’ thumping 7-0 win over the Selhurst Park outfit.
