How Ian Rush’s nephew emphasises a golden era for Liverpool’s academy

Arsenal will be relieved that Mohamed Salah, the natural heir to Ian Rush, will be absent for this weekend’s FA Cup third tound as he begins his Africa Cup of Nations quest with Egypt.

They may be more intrigued to discover that they are likely to face a relative of the legendary Welsh striker instead.

Owen Beck, the left-back recalled from a loan spell at Dundee this week, is Rush’s great-nephew. So impressive was his five-month stint at Dens Park, Liverpool have received enquiries from Celtic and Rangers regarding his availability, the Scottish Premier League side gutted to lose the marauding full-back who has been compared to Andy Robertson.

Now, after a series of loans that also took in Portuguese side Famalicao and Bolton Wanderers, the 21-year-old has a golden opportunity to prove himself at the highest level, pushing claims for a place in the Wales squad ahead of the Euro 2024 play-offs having received his first senior call-up this season.

On top of reiterating Jurgen Klopp’s insistence that a panic buy is not required in the ongoing absence of Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas, the faith in Beck further emphasises a golden era for Liverpool’s academy.

The early rounds of the domestic cups tend to be the natural habitat of a club’s emerging youngsters, and Klopp is sure to give more of them valuable experience at the Emirates on Sunday. He has stealthily integrated Under-21s into his first team at a prolific rate, but the cups are not their only domain.

For all the understandable attention on the club’s stellar players, there were six academy graduates in Liverpool’s matchday squad against Newcastle United as Klopp’s side extended their Premier League lead on Monday night.

The most high profile – Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Jarell Quansah and Caoimhin Kelleher  – are responsible for ensuring the academy is on course for a record-breaking number of minutes in a Premier League and European campaign for home-grown Liverpool players.

Alexander-Arnold is one of those rare breeds following the path of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher as a guaranteed starter. But it is in that band of players who may feature between 40-75 per cent of senior games where Liverpool are also excelling, with Jones and Quansah saving the club many millions of pounds.

In the threshold below that, Klopp has created a visible pathway.

Since the merger between Liverpool’s first team and youth training facilities at Kirkby in November 2020, there have been 16 senior debuts by academy players and there were seven on the pitch when Liverpool beat Toulouse 5-1 in this season’s Europa League.

As well as Beck, right-back Conor Bradley and midfielder James McConnell are in contention to face Mikel Arteta’s side this weekend, while Luke Chambers and Calum Scanlon have already made their senior debuts.

No number can be placed with 100 per cent accuracy on how much Liverpool’s academy has been worth to Klopp during the course of his reign. A figure in the region of £200 million would not be excessive given how much has already been recouped from some of the more recent graduate sales of players such as Harry Wilson to Fulham (£12 million), Neco Williams to Nottingham Forest (£17 million) and Ryan Kent to Rangers (£7.5 million), to name a few. The combined valuation of Alexander-Arnold and Jones would, at a conservative estimate, reach £150 million, although there is zero prospect of either being on the market any time soon.

For context, Manchester City and Chelsea spend an estimated £40 million a year on their youth centre. Liverpool’s runs at £12 million a season. The cost metrics extend to Klopp being courageous and confident enough to promote so many of his Under-21 players to his Premier League squad, thus ensuring the training ground is not flooded with back-up players recruited for significant transfer fees on massive contracts.

Instead, he is minded to zone in on hungry youngsters with plenty to prove, Beck being the latest to be delivered a message about seizing his chance.

Like Quansah, Beck’s journey contrasts with the likes of Alexander-Arnold and Jones, who were elevated without the need for a loan spell. He has matured since the summer, the misfortune of Robertson and Tsimikas creating an unexpected opening. Academy director Alex Inglethorpe and Matt Newbury, the head of recruitment, liaise with elite development coach Vitor Matos, goalkeeper coach John Achterberg and assistant manager Pep Lijnders to keep Klopp informed on who deserves a closer look.

“It is very much a collective effort in developing and preparing the young players when the time comes to step up,” Inglethorpe says. “But we are incredibly lucky to have a manager who is incredibly supportive of the academy.”

Beck has already made his senior debut, featuring against Preston and Leicester City in the 2022 Carabao Cup run before his physical development required short-term moves.

“When the players go on loan we want them to learn adaptability, independence and resilience. It is what we refer to as the A I R programme,” Inglethorpe says.

“People think a loan is only successful if you play games and immediately return to the first team. That is not true. There are many examples of players learning as much from an environment that has been challenging, away from what they are accustomed to where they know they will be playing Under-21 football every week. There are different paths - some not requiring a loan, others needing several before they are fully developed.”

Whether he plays this weekend or not, Beck will be under no illusions that he is a back-up to Joe Gomez until Robertson returns. Nevertheless, Klopp and Liverpool will hope the resumption of his Anfield career is proof of the value of meticulous long-term planning, and a useful reminder that not every smart January deal demands several million pounds in transfer and agent fees.