Trey Nyoni was impressive against Leeds, assisting Florian Wirtz
Trey Nyoni was impressive against Leeds, assisting Florian Wirtz(Image: Getty Images)
Andoni Iraola stood just 45 minutes away from an almost perfect three-match American tour on Sunday.
However, despite establishing a comfortable 2-0 advantage against Leeds in Chicago, numerous substitutions prompted a relentless attack from Daniel Farke's players, who capitalized on defensive vulnerabilities and squad-depth issues within the Reds' ranks.
The West Yorkshire outfit ultimately prevailed 4-2, meaning Liverpool returned home on Sunday, traveling back across the Atlantic, with two victories from the team's three fixtures during their American visit. Yet despite a defensively fragile second half in Illinois, the trip proved beneficial for the Reds, who resume training on Wednesday before Monaco's arrival at Anfield on Sunday.
Here are Liverpool.com's winners and losers from the trip.
Winners
Try Nyoni: While drawing conclusions purely from preseason fixtures carries inherent risks, Nyoni appears to have progressed significantly since last season under Arne Slot, when his entire campaign yielded merely 21 Premier League minutes. In reality, that was because former manager Slot believed he required his senior, experienced professionals to rescue the team from a predicament of their own creation, but Nyoni ought to be regarded as a first-team squad member now.
He impressed across all three matches and particularly excelled against Leeds during a first-half appearance that captured the imagination of the Liverpool supporters at Chicago's Soldier Field. It's easy to see why many view Rio Ngumoha as the next emerging talent at Anfield, but Nyoni, while considerably more low-key, appears equally gifted in his own way in the middle of the pitch. A significant campaign lies ahead. Hopefully, it will be at Anfield rather than out on loan.
Ifeanyi Ndukwe: The towering Austrian only celebrated his 18th birthday in the spring, but he resembles a physical presence who could be suited to life as a Liverpool center-back in the coming years. The wily Dominic Calvert-Lewin tested him thoroughly during the second period of the final preseason fixture in the United States, but Ndukwe should feel greatly heartened by his displays over the past two weeks.
Ifeanyi Ndukwe has certainly made an impression
Ifeanyi Ndukwe has certainly made an impression(Image: Getty Images)
It's unfortunate, considering the defensive shortages, that Ndukwe — a summer acquisition from Austria Vienna — will need to depart on loan, but it's clear what head of global talent Matt Newberry recognized in him during the Under-17 World Cup in Qatar back in November of last year. His ball distribution from defense requires improvement, but he appears rapid, strong, and his ability in the air for someone his age is outstanding. He is certainly one to monitor closely. It's unfortunate he won't be at Liverpool immediately, as work-permit complications mean a loan arrangement is necessary.
Florian Wirtz: Wirtz participated in only one sixth of the preseason fixtures, appearing for merely 45 minutes during the Leeds encounter, yet the playmaker demonstrated sufficient quality to indicate this campaign could prove different. The challenges faced by the Germany international have been extensively chronicled and not entirely of his own doing, but this summer offers a fresh start for everyone, and nobody, apart from Alexander Isak perhaps, is more prepared to seize that opportunity than Wirtz.
The Reds pulled out all the stops last summer to secure Wirtz ahead of Manchester City and Bayern Munich, launching a charm offensive that commenced as early as winter 2024, when they permitted Bayer Leverkusen to utilize the AXA Training Centre facilities the morning following a Champions League triumph over the Bundesliga side. The invitation extended to Xabi Alonso and his coaching staff to train at the facility served a purpose beyond mere courtesy to the club icon.
It was equally intended as a gentle hint to Wirtz regarding the working environment that could await him, should he opt to join Liverpool just a few months down the line. However, following a challenging debut season, considerably more is anticipated from the 23-year-old, and this performance against Leeds, which ended with a goal, represented a significant boost for those who believe Wirtz is now primed to truly hit his stride.
Losers
Curtis Jones: A meltdown over the captain's armband in a preseason friendly, three underwhelming displays, and renewed interest from Inter; it's safe to say Curtis Jones has experienced more impressive fortnights as a Liverpool player. The lowest point arrived when he went viral for entirely the wrong reasons on the pitch at Yankee Stadium in New York last week. Having apparently taken umbrage at the decision to hand the captaincy to Kostas Tsimikas following Dominik Szoboszlai's substitution in the 1-0 victory over Wrexham, Jones took real exception.
Following a heated exchange with Szoboszlai after the final whistle, which concluded with Tsimikas throwing down the armband in frustration at his teammates' annoyance, Jones rapidly became a talking point across social media. Those within the club have sought to dismiss the incident as a minor disagreement born out of the pressures of an elite environment, and the sight of Szoboszlai and Jones sharing smiles at open training later that week suggested it was all water under the bridge.
Yet at a time when Liverpool's leadership is already under scrutiny, Jones' public outburst was an unfortunate episode. It was wholly avoidable and served only to amplify growing concerns about the absence of discipline within the dressing room. Inter's most recent bid, understood to be in the region of £30 million ($40 million), was submitted later in the week, and the situation remains unresolved. Given Jones' troubled preseason, a fresh start elsewhere may ultimately prove to be the best outcome for everyone involved.
Joe Gomez: With Virgil van Dijk back on Merseyside and Jeremy Jacquet ruled out through injury, this tour represented a genuine chance for Gomez to make a strong impression on a new head coach. As a versatile and long-standing squad member — Gomez is now working under his fourth manager at the club — the seasoned former England star might have hoped to stake his claim for the position he has long coveted: a starting berth at center-half for Liverpool.
However, just eight minutes into the summer schedule, those ambitions were dealt a severe blow. Named captain for the evening, he was forced off with a muscle injury that will now see him miss the opening of the new Premier League campaign. If Gomez was attempting to demonstrate that Liverpool doesn't require another center-back this summer, the most recent injury setback only reinforced the necessity for one. That is quite an accomplishment within eight minutes.
Jeremy Jacquet: Jacquet officially joined Liverpool at the beginning of July, with private assurances given that he was prepared to commence preseason training. However, three friendly matches into the summer schedule and the new defender has yet to feature for his new club, raising significant concerns about who will partner Virgil van Dijk when Newcastle visits on August 23.
Jacquet was already facing an uphill battle, having been sidelined since a season-ending shoulder injury in February, and considering he only turns 21 this month, demanding immediate impact from such a youthful and relatively untested player appears unreasonable. It remains unclear at this point whether his injury is connected to the earlier shoulder problem from this year or if he has sustained an entirely different knock. But one thing is certain — the preseason tour of the United States completely bypassed him.
Jones posted a photograph of the Frenchman sleeping on his Instagram account on Saturday, and while the image was largely interpreted in the manner it was meant — as two team-mates simply sharing some pre-season banter — the picture of Jacquet's slumber proved oddly appropriate for his United States tour.