Have you ever watched three pre-season friendlies in a row? I have. I don't recommend it. You come away from them with conclusions like "Ben Woodburn is the best footballer there is, has ever been and ever will be. That's what happened when I watched Liverpool vs. Wigan on Sunday. Like I said, I don't recommend it.
I mentioned in the last friendly recap that Marko Grujic is the light and the salvation. I stand by that. Ben Woodburn is also the light and the salvation. Grujic will be the best player of all time for a few years and then Woodburn will take the reins as best player of all time.
Woodburn looked like a world-beater against Wigan, even scoring his second goal in two games. He is 16 years old, which has caused many soccer people who should know better to wet their pants in anticipation of his senior career. I am even more far gone than that. I have wet my pants, taken them off and am running around yelling at passerby how good Liverpool are going to be in five to eight years once Ben Woodburn, the light and the salvation, is leading the line.
Just give him the Ballon d'Or now he's going to win it eventually anyway.
Watching pre-season friendlies, you can't help but leap to lunatic conclusions about 16-year-old academy strikers who have managed to find the net against the likes of Wigan and Fleetwood Town. It's like I'm trapped in the desert without water or quality soccer and now I'm hallucinating. If I took a picture of myself watching Liverpool vs. Wigan, it would probably look something like this:
Photo: @dankscope | Twitter
Only six more pre-season friendlies to go. Pray for me.
Contact The18 Staff Writer Sam Klomhaus at Klomhaus@The18.com or follow him on Twitter @SamKlomhaus
