Liverpool journalist James Pearce has been sharing his thoughts on Reds attacker Takumi Minamino.
This comes after Pearce recently made an appearance on The Athletic’s Liverpool-based podcast The Red Agenda to look back at the 0-0 draw between Liverpool and Everton at the weekend as well as any other big topics concerning the club.
When asked whether or not Minamino could eventually find himself playing as a part of Liverpool’s attacking front three, Pearce shared his thoughts on the idea.
He said: “I think he’d only played 70-odd minutes of league football for Liverpool before [the Everton match] so he has to be cut some slack. [He’s] come into a new country, a new language, new city, I know he’s worked really hard on his English during the lockdown and used the time wisely to get himself more at home in this city.
“I like him, I think he’s a very intelligent footballer, you can see that with his movement.
“I’m still pretty optimistic about Minamino, I just think he’s got to be given time. He was never going to be one of those players that just comes in and lights the place up.
“Of course, he’s nowhere near at the moment in the class of the front three, the reality is very few players in world football are, but I think that was a smart piece of business bringing him in, and as Klopp has said repeatedly, he was bought for the long term. And Klopp certainly sees him having a bigger part to play next season.
“He needs to really grasp the opportunities that come his way in the coming weeks.”
Would you start Minamino against Crystal Palace?
Yes
No
The 25-year-old signed to the Merseyside club in the January transfer window from RB Salzburg for a fee of £7.65 million.
Since then, Minamino has gone on to make eight appearances for the Reds but is still yet to register a goal or assist for the club (per Transfermarkt).
TIF Thoughts…
It’s good to hear that Pearce clearly has a lot of confidence that Minamino can continue his progress and development at Liverpool.