Liverpool potentially have another Michael Owen within their ranks.
17-year-old Oakley Cannonier has been on fire for Liverpool’s U18 side this season, having surpassed the 40-goal mark this campaign.
Cannonier has been firing all season which has earned him mass plaudits from U18’s manager Marc Bridge-Wilkinson as he told The Athletic:
“Oakley is really bright. He’s a good little footballer. His instincts for the game are very natural. It’s something we have to make sure he retains.”
Cannonier previously earned acclaim for his alertness as a ball-boy – giving Trent Alexander-Arnold the ball for the right-back’s quickly-taken corner which created the winner for Divock Origi in the Reds’ sensational Champions League comeback against Barcelona.
It was this act that bagged him an invitation to train with the Liverpool first-team, with Klopp telling the youngster: “I just need to thank you for what you did!”
Cannonier, who trained with the first team solely on merit, impressed Klopp during those sessions, with the German keeping tabs on his development with the U18’s ever since.
His goalscoring touch has earned him comparisons to Roberto Firmino, with many believing he is the future of Liverpool’s front line.
Whilst the latter is highly likely if he can keep up this form, his presence as a feared out-and-out forward is more reminiscent of Michael Owen, who also enjoyed a rise to fame via the Liverpool youth system.
Cannonier bagged his 39th and 40th goals of the season during Liverpool U18’s 5-1 victory over Wolves, which will have felt sweet for the lifelong Liverpool fan who told The Athletic: “I just always wanted to play for Liverpool. It was a no-brainer.”
The young Englishman’s rise to success is gaining traction and with the 17-year-old tipped to be moving up to the Liverpool U23s next season, we could well see the new Michael Owen donning the Liverpool shirt come next season.
AND in other news: Liverpool now plot £67m bid for “sensational” £76k-p/w “winner”, imagine him and Salah
