One Liverpool player was the toast of his country’s football media after his most recent international outing.
A nondescript 2-0 win for Northern Ireland over Andorra played out in front of just 400 paying punters in Murcia isn’t likely to live too long in the memory, but it was an occasion to recall fondly for Conor Bradley, who netted both goals on the night in the space of six first-half minutes.
He received a 9/10 in the post-match player ratings for both Belfast Live and the Northern Irish print edition of the Daily Mirror (page 50), with the latter’s Steven Crawford hailing his ‘undoubted quality’.
In the Belfast Telegraph, Steven Beacom wrote: “Conor Bradley. I’ve said it before and will say it again…what a talent Northern Ireland have on their hands. The same goes for Liverpool Football Club. For the umpteenth time in 2024, the 20-year-old from Tyrone showed his class…”
Having been thrust into the Liverpool first team last winter when Trent Alexander-Arnold was sidelined through injury, Bradley has progressed leaps and bounds as a footballer since the start of January.
His first Reds goal in the 4-1 demolition of Chelsea at Anfield was simply the start of a prolonged run in the side during which he never looked out of place, and there was even a debate in some quarters as to whether he’d keep the vice-captain out of the team once the latter regained fitness.
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That didn’t happen, but the 20-year-old has emerged as a genuine option to start regularly under Arne Slot, with his elder positional peer possibly moving to a midfield role which’d facilitate both of them to be included in the line-up.
Bradley’s case for regular inclusion at Liverpool can certainly be helped by him starring for his country, just as he did on Tuesday night, even if it was in a friendly against a team ranked 164th in the world (FIFA).
If 2023/24 witnessed his breakthrough into the first-team fold at Anfield, the upcoming season could hopefully be the one in which this gem of a right-back truly established himself for the Reds. He definitely seems well placed to do just that.
READ MORE: A history of Liverpool players at the European Championship
