Date: 17th August 2011 at 12:44pm
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And who says there will be no European Football at Anfield this season? It may not be the Champions League that we all want to play in or even the Europa League but the Liverpool youngsters will be kicking off their NextGen series tonight at Anfield against Sporting Lisbon.

This is the first time the NextGen series will be played as it is a competition featuring the Under 19’s from teams across Europe. This tournament will give us all a chance to see how the youngsters at the clubs are coming through.

Kenny Dalglish is also looking forward to this tournament. “It’s a fantastic tournament and we’re privileged to be part and parcel of it,” Dalglish told Liverpoolfc.tv.

“You don’t qualify for it, you get invited to play in it, so it tells you the high regard Liverpool have in Europe when we are invited to play in it and we are really looking forward to seeing how it develops.

“The quality I’m sure is going to be very high so we’ll need to step up to the mark and do our best to put on a good show.

“I think it’s a great education for the players.

“With the first game being at Anfield it’s fantastic for the supporters to go and watch the kids play.

“They know these boys did very well last year in the Youth Cup so I’m sure they are looking forward to seeing them play this season a year older.”

Damien Comolli was asked how important this competition is for the Reds and said, “It is very important. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a competition that European football was lacking. It is almost a dream come true for every director of football and academy director. I’ve been hearing about this project for the last 15 years and a lot of people have been trying to set it up. Finally we now have it. When I joined the club last November, Frank McParland was already holding talks with the organisers and when he told me about it, I said straight away, ‘We’ve got to get in it’ because it is very important for Liverpool and it is going to become an important competition in Europe.”

 

5 responses to “European Football returns to Anfield”

  1. European Football will return to Anfield next season.

    The squad we have currently is one of the best,should they start playing football of the 60’s – 80’s not only will European Football be in our hands but the title as well.

    And Stevie G will be a new signing-he will gives extra attacking options and goals from midfield. Good luck lads.

  2. Will Piper says:

    It’s fantastic that the academy team is doing so well, it speaks volumes about how strong our youth setup is if we are being invited to play in European competitions. Best of luck to them.

  3. Tom says:

    Good luck tonight guys! I cant wait to watch the game live. YNWA