OPINION
One of the biggest stories surrounding Liverpool Football Club towards the end of last season was the sudden departure of assistant manager Zeljko Buvac, whose exit is still yet to be confirmed by the club.
The Bosnian-Serb is officially reported to have left for family reasons, but multiple claims elsewhere suggest it was a falling out between him and manager Jurgen Klopp that led to his exit.
Anyhow, his mysterious disappearance coincided with the return of Pep Ljinders to the coaching staff after a short stint as manager of NEC Nijmegen in the Netherlands.
Ljinders new role was initially unclear but over the summer it has become obvious that the Dutchman has stepped up as a replacement for Buvac in the Reds dugout.
While this may seem like a move that may have had adverse effects on the first-team environment, Ljinders’ return is actually set to be hugely helpful for the club this season.
His former role as first-team development coach made him the main link between the academy and first-team, and those relationships he developed in that position will now allow him to help the club’s young players as they enter the senior set-up.
Under-23 coach Neil Critchley is quoted by Goal as saying: “Pep was only away for a short period of time, and for us as an academy, it’s great that he’s back.
“We’re fortunate that we’ve got an ‘in’, so to speak, at Melwood with the first team. And that’s really important because if we’re going to give them players, we don’t want them to fail when they have an audition.”
With youngsters such as Curtis Jones, Rafa Camacho, Nat Philips and Rhian Brewster all pushing for first-team chances, the return and promotion of a coach like Ljinders is set to benefit Liverpool hugely.
With Ljinders now essentially taking Buvac’s place as Klopp’s right-hand man, his increased influence in the first-team environment is set to allow more opportunities for these young players to develop.
And that can only be a good thing in the long run as the Reds look to marry their recruitment strategy in the transfer market with a successful academy set-up.
So, while Buvac’s exit was a bitter blow for the club it has in fact had a hugely positive side effect of opening up these doors to young talents, and hopefully Liverpool can start to reap the rewards of that change very soon.
