Coady and Yesil Excel as Liverpool Thrash NextGen Holders Inter
Liverpool secure 4-1 win over Inter that sees them qualify for the last 16
Liverpool stormed through to the last 16 of the NextGen Series with an impressive 4-1 victory against holders Internazionale.
The Reds knew they needed three points to qualify for the last 16 of the tournament and they always looked in control as captain Conor Coady and German Under-21 international Samed Yesil each grabbed a brace to see Liverpool advance.
Coady was able to dictate play from the outset and opened the scoring from the penalty spot on thirty minutes after good work from Ryan McLaughlin who was almost unplayable on the night.
The winger caused problems all night with his direct runs but it was Yesil who grabbed the second after he seized upon a underhit back pass to coolly slot the ball past Dawid Smug to take the home side into the break 2-0 up.
Inter came out fighting in the second half with Marco Benassi finding the net on sixty-one minutes, but Liverpool responded almost immediately with Yesil grabbing his second goal on the night with a fine finish.
McLaughlin then won his second penalty of the game ten minutes from time which Coady converted to seal victory at 4-1 and send his side through to the last 16.
There was also time for Liverpool to introduce 15-year-old Jordan Rossiter, who is the England Under-16 captain and has been earmarked as a potential star of the future.
The midfielder received high praise from former Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler who even suggested he could one day emulate Steven Gerrard.
"[sic] young lad just about to come on for a few mins for Liverpool in nextgen... Jordan rossiter, big shout but potentially a young stevie g," tweeted Fowler.
Liverpool youth sides have been in excellent form this season with the Under-21 side finishing the first half of the season undefeated, while victory for the Under-19 side means that they qualify for the knockout stages of the NextGen competition for the second consecutive year.
New boss Alex Inglethorpe will now be hoping that his side can improve upon their performance last season where they were eventually knocked out at the semi-final stage after losing 6-0 to Ajax.
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