Liverpool youngsters given harsh lesson as Lewis Koumas stars elsewhere

Liverpool under-21s suffered the brutal reality of senior football when they were beaten in their EFL Trophy group opener at Crewe Alexandra. A Dominic Corness penalty was the only thing a young Reds side had to show in a 5-1 thrashing.

The result means Liverpool have now lost 16 of 17 games played in the competition since they first entered in 2019/20.

But there were a number of talking points that could be taken from the evening at the Mornflake Stadium against their League Two opponents.

Figueroa finds it tough

An unwanted feature for Liverpool under-21s during the early stage of the season has been the lack of cutting edge in the final third.

While there was a fine 3-1 win over Manchester City on the opening Premier League 2 weekend, those goals came from the midfield, as well as Trey Nyoni's strike in last Saturday's 2-1 loss at home to Leicester City.

Absences have made the task that much tougher for U21s coach Barry Lewtas. Ben Doak and Kaide Gordon aren't being considered ahead of potential loan moves, Jayden Danns and Oakley Cannonier are injured - and were joined on the sidelines at the weekend by Kieran Morrison - while Lewis Koumas is on loan at Stoke City.

While Koumas was scoring and assisting for the Potters in their League Cup romp at Middlesbrough on Tuesday, it was left to 17-year-old Keyrol Figueroa to lead the line on his first appearance in the EFL Trophy here at League Two side Crewe Alexandra.

It was a steep learning curve. The teenager almost enjoyed a dream start when only a decent save from Crewe goalkeeper Filip Marschall prevented a goal from Kyle Kelly's pass.

That, though, was as good as it got, Figueroa finding it difficult in particular to protect possession with one easy concession prompting the move for Crewe's fifth goal on 74 minutes, eventually finished by substitute Adrien Thibaut.

There is mitigation that the players either side of him, Michael Laffey on the right and Kelly the left, were both out of position and service was intermittent at best.. But Figueroa will learn from his debut exposure at this level.

Nallo given Long lesson

The striker wasn't the only 17-year-old Liverpool player to suffer a chastening evening.

Amara Nallo has seen his stock rise considerably since arriving from West Ham United 12 months ago, progressing from the U18s to the U21 and gaining minutes with the first team during the pre-season tour to the United States this summer.

But he endured a wayward first half in which, up against the experienced Crewe striker Chris Long, he was given a stark indication of what life can be like as a centre-back in senior football, even with three EFL Trophy outings last year already under his belt.

Liverpool went behind early to a third-minute strike from Fin Roberts but dragged themselves level through a Dominic Corness penalty seven minutes later, won by Laffey being alert to an attempted backpass. And they were very much in the game when, on the half hour, Nallo gifted the ball straight to Long, who raced through to score.

Nallo was then partly responsible for Crewe's third goal two minutes before half-time, indecision between the defender and Kelly allowed a pass to reach Long which was thumped home from just inside the area.

Even though Crewe weren't as physically imposing as other Football League opponents, Liverpool's youngsters were undermined by individual errors. It contributed to a frustrating night.

Hill and Pilling impress

With 17-year-old midfielder Trey Nyoni also missing, Liverpool had to look elsewhere for creativity from midfield.

Corness, playing in the deeper role, missed an opportunity to score another penalty shortly before the hour when, after Kelly was felled, he fired wide from the spot.

That opportunity had come from a long diagonal pass by Tommy Pilling, who put in a busy shift and was always looking to take possession and move Liverpool forward.

Tom Hill completed the midfield triumvirate and was close with one shot in the first half following a strong run, but could have avoided the challenge that led to the penalty from which Ryan Cooney scored Crewe's fourth six minutes after half-time to effectively end the game as a contest.

Liverpool conclude their group with trips to Harrogate and Blackpool. With the transfer window closing on Friday evening, U21s coach Lewtas will at least know which players he has available rather than having to leave some out in case they are wanted on loan. Certainly, it has been a testing few opening weeks to the season for the Academy.