OPINION
Ray Parlour described West Bromwich Albion midfielder Jake Livermore as being Premier League quality and that shows the battle the Baggies may face regarding keeping him at the club in the summer.
The former Arsenal midfielder highlighted the 29-year-old Baggies player when analysing Darren Moore’s squad.
“Jake Livermore obviously got the late winner the other night, and they (WBA) have got a lot of experience, just look at Jakes Livermore, we’re talking about a Premier League player there,” said Parlour on talkSPORT (Friday February 22nd, 17:41).
Parlour’s verdict shows that he thinks Livermore is still capable of playing in England’s top-flight and that is an opinion that should be echoed by everyone.
The Baggies midfield enforcer has often looked a level above the Championship in his 30 league outings this season, and could in fact be doing a job for a team in the Premier League right now.
Livermore, who has featured in 178 times in England’s top-flight, stuck with the Baggies after they suffered relegation last season but may not be so keen to stick with them if they’re set for another season in the Championship.
This is especially the case when you consider that he is 29-years-old and that clubs planning for a season in the Premier League in the summer will likely be interested in him due to his experience and talent.
As is stands Moore’s side still have a chance of winning promotion as they currently sit fourth in the table and look on course to reach the play-offs at the very least.
However the Championship play-offs have proven over the past few seasons that they are a glorified lottery and no team can be confident about winning them.
This means that if the Baggies do find themselves missing out on promotion this season, it seems a realistic possibility that they could end up waving goodbye to Livermore.