Jurgen Klopp heaped praise on Liverpool youngster Ki-Jana Hoever and wouldn’t rule out the defender making his senior debut against Wolves on Monday night.
The Reds manager shared that the 16-year-old was a joy to watch and that he was defiantly a player for the future.
Klopp admitted that he will be making changes to his team for the FA Cup clash with Wolves on Monday and shared that he didn’t know whether Hoever would feature but hinted about it by claiming people will simply have to wait and see.
Klopp on Hoever: He is one for the future. If Joel and Joe would have been fit all the time, Ki-Jana wouldn't be training with the first team. It's a joy to watch him. He learns a lot and improves a lot. It's a nice prospect. Wolves? I don't know. We will see.
— Ian Doyle (@IanDoyleSport) January 5, 2019
“He is one for the future,” stated Klopp in his press conference, as transcribed by Liverpool Echo journalist Ian Doyle on his personal Twitter account.
“If Joel and Joe would have been fit all the time, Ki-Jana wouldn’t be training with the first team.
“It’s a joy to watch him. He learns a lot and improves a lot. It’s a nice prospect. Wolves? I don’t know. We will see.”
OPINION
The 16-year-old’s name has been buzzing around Anfield a lot lately and it would be nice to see him making his senior debut for the Reds on Monday. However only Klopp knows whether the promising prospect is ready to taste that level of football as he doesn’t want to do anything to damper his progress or potential at such a fragile stage of his career. Hoever has progressed through the ranks of the Reds’ youth system quiet quickly especially when he only arrived from Ajax in the summer, but at the end of the day cream tends to rise to the top. The youngster has been in promising form this season and that is shown by the fact he is training with the first team as Klopp points out. While the German boss highlights the fact the 16-year-old has gotten the opportunity to experience first-team training due to injuries to Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, he still had to impress once being given the golden chance to show Klopp what he is capable of first-hand.
