Neco Williams left Liverpool for Nottingham Forest in 2022, but has since gone on to become a crucial player and full international
NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 22: Mohamed Salah of Liverpool is challenged by Neco Williams of Nottingham Forest during the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Liverpool at City Ground on February 22, 2026 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool is challenged by Neco Williams of Nottingham Forest during the Premier League match at the City Ground on February 22, 2026 in Nottingham, England(Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
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When Andy Robertson leaves Liverpool at the end of the season, along with Mohamed Salah, it will truly be the end of an era. While all of the wider media attention will be around the Egyptian star, the loss of arguably the Reds' best left-back over the past 30 years cannot be underestimated.
As Echo and The Bunnymen once said, however, nothing ever lasts forever, and Robertson's replacement was signed last season as the squad transition process got underway.
After an excellent season with Bournemouth, Milos Kerkez was brought to Anfield for a whopping £40m as part of Arne Slot's summer spending fee. In stark contrast, Liverpool paid just £8m for Robertson when they swiped him from relegated Hull City in 2017.
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Kerkez had big shoes to fill and it's more than fair to say that he got off to an underwhelming start with nervous and mixed performances. Thankfully, his form has gradually improved and steadied out over the course of what has been a poor Premier League title defence, but it has been enough for the Hungarian to establish himself as Slot's first-choice left-back.
Nevertheless, Robertson has still managed to make 21 league appearances this season, with 11 starts, compared to Kerkez's 29 appearances and 25 starts. But the Scotland captain will have soon played his last game for the club, meaning the Reds will need an alternative option.
Kostas Tsimikas has spent the season on loan with AS Roma in Italy, but for the Greek international to have been replaced in the squad by Kerkez, Slot obviously felt that he needed a better option.
Liverpool's 2025/25 season has been hugely disappointing, and everyone has to take some responsibility for that. Some £440m was spent last summer and so far the return on that investment has been poor.
There is widespread acknowledgement that the Reds must vastly improve the depth of the their squad if they are going to be a force again next season and when it comes to the full-back positions I believe theycould do a lot worse than look to bring a former academy graduate back into the fold.
Neco Williams left Liverpool for Nottingham Forest in 2022 and was fortunate enough to do so with a Premier League winner's medal in his pocket, albeit he only made six league appearances as a youngster in the 2019/20 season under Jurgen Klopp.
After spending half a season on loan with Fulham, he signed a four-year contract at the City Ground and has gone on to not only establish himself as a first-team regular but also a full Wales international.
It is rare that I would advocate for bringing a former player back to Liverpool, but his output for Forest (in what has been a difficult season) has made me sit up and take notice.
The consistency of his performances comes with a testimonial, too. Nottinghamshire Live's dedicated Nottingham Forest reporter Sarah Clapson confirms that Williams is in the mix for the club's player of the season award.
She told the ECHO: "He has been absolutely brilliant this season. He has been Mr Consistent for Forest. His performances have been at a high level week in, week out and he can always be relied upon to give 100 per cent.
"He has certainly been Forest’s most consistent player during what has been somewhat of a tumultuous campaign and he is very much in the running to be crowned their player of the season.
"Defensively, he rarely puts a foot wrong and will get stuck in with tackles. He also has a lot of energy and can get up and down the pitch, so is always looking to get involved in attacks. He has got a good shot on him, too - something Vitor Pereira has encouraged him to make more of and it paid off recently with a lovely goal against Aston Villa.
"What makes Williams really stand out, though, is his attitude. In a season where Forest have struggled, he has been fully committed in every game and gives his all every single time. He never gives up or gives in. He’s exactly the type of player and person you want in a dressing room."
A look at Williams' high-level statistics in the Premier League this season backs up the notion that he has had an impressive campaign and that viewpoint is only enhanced when you compare some of his key metrics to Kerkez's first season at Liverpool.
Williams has made 32 appearances so far this campaign, with Kerkez on 29. They have both scored two goals each, but Williams has three assists, with Kerkez only on one. Both of Williams' goals game from direct free kicks.
A deeper dive on the attacking statistics leans in favour of Williams. The Welsman has had five goal involvments, with Kerkez currently on three. William's xG is 1.84, while Kerkez is on 1.56.
But these players are more relied upon to create chances than score them and there is a clear winner here. Kerkez has an xA (Expected Assists) value of 0.66 while Williams is streets ahead on 3.78.
It's a similar story on crosses, something Kerkez was expected to provide plenty off for Liverpool this season.
While the Hungary international has provided 75 crosses this Premier League campaign (with a 17 per cent completion rate), Williams has provided a whopping 106 (with 20% completion rate). Some allowance must be made for the fact that the Forest star has played three games more than Kerkez, yet he is still 31 crosses ahead of his opponent on this metric.
It's not all about going forward, though. How do these please stack up defensively? It appears to be more of the same.
Williams has won 196 duels and 37 aerial duels. Kerkez 104 and 32, respectively. The former has completed 84 tackles, made 37 interceptions and 14 blocks. The latter has made 40 tackles, 13 interceptions and eight blocks.
One area where Kerkez does outperform Williams is on discipline, however. The Reds' left-back has committed 19 fouls compared to Williams' 26, has one fewer bookings with four and unlike the Forest defender, hasn't been sent off this season.
I've dug a little deeper into the numbers than I was planning to with this comparison, and the point of this article is not to replace Kerkez, but to make a case for bringing Williams back into the Anfield fold.
But while the 25-year-old's excellent season at Forest suggests to me that it might be a good idea, let's remember that he has delivered these numbers was spending the majority of the season playing out of position.
"He has been a regular at left-back for Forest, although he has switched over to the right when required," said Clapson. "That versatility is a really useful asset to have. He is comfortable on either side and just delivers wherever he plays.
"Sometimes he will come inside to switch on to his preferred foot. But honestly, it really doesn’t make a difference which side he plays on."
Williams is naturally right-footed, so if he can maintain these levels at left-back, what could he produce at right-back?
Liverpool have Connor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong for this position, but Bradley, whom I am a big fan of, has already had plenty of injury problems to contend with and given Slot's appetite for playing central midfielders like Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai in that role this season, it would appear that the Dutchman is not totally convinced that is compatriot is the man for the job in Liverpool's defence.
Taking all of that into account, the consistency and versatility of Williams make him an obvious candidate to strengthen Liverpool's squad next season and put genuine pressure on Kerkez and whoever is playing right-back, which is something so desperately needed.
Transfermarkt.com values Williams currently at around £21.7m, just over half of what the Reds paid last season for Kerkez., but they could effectively cover two positions with one transfer.
Clapson added: "A few rumours about possible transfer interest in the summer have started to do the rounds. It is really not a surprise because he has been terrific. Since he joined Forest in 2022, he has made huge strides.
"With his quality and his personality, he has got the attributes to do well anywhere. Forest will hope he stays put as he is a key player and an important member of the dressing room."
The Reds sold Williams to Forest for £17m in 2022 and he has three years left on his current deal, but even paying around £25m to get him back feels like a bargain, which is something Liverpool could do with being better at following last year's questionable summer splurge.