| Full name | Liverpool Football Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Mighty Reds | |||
| Founded | 2014 | |||
| Ground | The Academy, Kirkby | |||
| Manager | Rob Page (U21) vacant (U18) | |||
| League | Professional Development League | |||
| 2024–25 | 16th | |||
| Website | www | |||
Liverpool F.C. Under-21s is the reserve & senior youth team ofLiverpool F.C. It is the most senior level of the Liverpool academy beneath the first team. In the summer of 2012, the whole English reserve football system was overhauled and replaced with an Under-21 league system, theProfessional Development League. Liverpool's reserve team became the Liverpool under-21 team and competes in the Professional Development League 1 which is also known by its sponsorship name of Barclays Under-21 Premier League and Premier League 2. The team generally consists of Under-21 players at the club but at times senior players also play for the reserves when they are recuperating from injury. Following the introduction of new regulations from the 2012–13 season, only three outfield players and one goalkeeper over the age of 21 can play for the reserves regularly.
Liverpool F.C. Academy is the youth set up Liverpool Football Club. It trains players from the U6 age group[1] up to the U21 squad. The academy has separate head coaches in charge of development in the U6-U9, U10-U11, U12-U14 and U15-U16 age groups. At U21 and U18 level there are dedicated coaching teams managed byMichael Beale with the U21 position vacant as of 2 March 2020.Alex Inglethorpe was promoted from U21 manager to Academy Director in the summer of 2014 and holds overall responsibility for operation of the academy. The academy has won theFA Youth Cup, a competition for players of age 15 to 18, four times in 1996, 2006, 2007 and 2019.
Liverpool F.C. Academy is considered to be one of the most productivefootball academies of the richer clubs both in England and in the world. Various current and past Liverpool players have graduated through the academy, includingBilly Liddell,Ronnie Moran,Ian Callaghan,Phil Thompson,Robbie Fowler,Steve McManaman,Michael Owen,Jamie Carragher,Steven Gerrard andTrent Alexander-Arnold, among many others.
Liverpool Under-21s played inPremier League 2. The Reserves won the regional division title in 2000 and again 2008 winning also the national league that year. It competed in theLancashire Combination from 1896 to 1911, with the exception of the 1898–99 season, in which it joinedThe Combination. From 1911 on, it took part in theCentral League until becoming inaugural members of the Premier Reserve League North in 1999. The team also participated in theLiverpool Senior Cup and theLancashire Senior Cup; the last time it took part in them was the 2009–10 season when it also won both competitions.
The last reserve team manager was Rodolfo Borrell, who was appointed in July 2011 and led the reserve team during its final season before taking over the newly formed under-21 side in July 2012. The reserves last played their home games atPrenton Park (the home ofTranmere Rovers);[2] in previous seasons the team has also played at the club's academy, theHalliwell Jones Stadium (home ofWarrington Wolves),Haig Avenue (the home ofSouthport),Totally Wicked Stadium (the home ofSt Helens R.F.C.) and theRacecourse Ground (home ofWrexham).
The most successful Liverpool Reserves manager wasRoy Evans. Evans spent most of his playing career as a reserve team player, making only 11 appearances for the first team. After an injury ended his career in 1974, he was appointed manager of the reserves byBob Paisley. Evans subsequently led the reserves to victory in a series of Central League championships, including three in his first three seasons, a four in a row sequence from 1978, and two more in the early 1980s. Throughout the history of Liverpool FC, many of the club's best known players have progressed through the reserve team. These include people who at one point were first team squad members includingTrent Alexander-Arnold,Steven Gerrard,Robbie Fowler,Michael Owen,Steve McManaman,Jamie Carragher andRaheem Sterling.
In 1998, a new state-of-the-art Youth Academy was opened inKirkby,Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley. It replaced the older, more informal youth system, and enables the club to focus their youth development and scouting, employing new techniques and FA standards.
Scouts attend many local youth matches looking for talented boys. A boy will then be invited to attend training sessions at the Academy. They are currently taken in as young as the age of six. FormerEngland International playerJamie Carragher started at Liverpool when he was aged just nine, withMichael Owen joining at eleven, andSteven Gerrard joining at the age of eight.[3]
On the walls of the indoor centre hang the words 'Technique', 'Attitude', 'Balance', and 'Speed'. 'TABS' is the key word preached at The Academy.[4] Academy directorAlex Inglethorpe has said the remit of the academy is to produce physically, technically, tactically and mentally elite players with enough quality to represent the senior side in theChampions League.[1] Liverpool won the2005 Champions league with two locally born academy graduates starting in the final.
The Academy has a long-lasting affiliation withMTK Budapest's Sándor Károly Football Academy[5] and maintains a number of football schools worldwide through partnerships with football clubs and commercial and sports organisations.[6] LFC International Football Academy currently has branches in Scandinavia[7] (Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Gran Canaria during winter), America[8] (Texas and Plymouth, the latter through an affiliate[9] with CS United Soccer Club), Egypt[10] (Cairo), South Africa[11] (Durban and Johannesburg), China[12] (Guilin), India[13] (Pune, in cooperation withDSK Shivajians), and Japan[14] (Tokyo). Previously schools were also run in Abuja, Belfast, Boston, Charlotte, Cyprus, Dublin, Hong Kong, Iceland, Jakarta, Katwijk, Lisbon, Madrid, Malta, Mumbai, Manila, Nairobi, Saint Vincent, and Singapore.[6]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Players listed in bold have made at least one senior first-team appearance.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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In addition, the Academy employ staff from thefirst-team.
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Bob Paisley (1954–1957)Joe Fagan (1957–1974)Roy Evans (1975–1984)Chris Lawler (1984–1986)[18]Phil Thompson (1986–1992)Sammy Lee (1993–1998)Joe Corrigan (1998–2002)Hughie McAuley (2003–2006)Gary Ablett (2006–2009)John McMahon (2009–2011)
José Segura (caretaker) (2011) Rodolfo Borrell (2011–2012)Alex Inglethorpe (2012–2014)Michael Beale (2014–2016) Mike Garrity (caretaker) (2016–2017)Neil Critchley (2017–2020) Barry Lewtas (2020–2025)
Rob Page (2025–present)Players inbold are still playing for Liverpool.
| Season | Name | Nationality | Position | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | Jordan Rossiter | England | Midfielder | [19][20] |
| 2014–15 | João Carlos Teixeira |  Portugal | Midfielder | [21] |
| 2015–16 | Brad Smith |  Australia | Defender | [22] |
| 2016–17 | Trent Alexander-Arnold | England | Defender | [23] |
| 2017–18 | Harry Wilson | Wales | Winger | [24] |
| 2018–19 | Not Awarded | |||
Reserves[edit]
| Youth[edit]
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*Asterisk denotes a shared title.
Liverpool's youth system has only seen moderate success over the years; with only a few players who have come through it have gone on to feature in the first-team. The following players have gone on to play over ten competitive matches for the first team.
Pre-WW2 | 1940s |
1950s | 1960s |
1970s | 1980s |
1990s | 2000s |
2010s | 2020s |
Many of the former Liverpool youth and reserve team players have found success with other clubs. None of these players became established members of the Liverpool first team.
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
The Academy also has a partnership agreement with Liverpool FC. The Academy is regularly inspected by representatives of this outstanding club to be informed about the players' development first hand.[permanent dead link]
Hot prospect Jordan Rossiter scooped the Academy Players' Player of the Year honour
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