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It won’t be all moaning about a horrible loss to Tottenham and Barcelona reviving their efforts to sign Philippe Coutinho this week thanks to Ben Woodburn, as the Liverpool academy prospect officially signed a new long-term contract today.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling to sign a new contract with Liverpool,” the young winger, who turned 18 earlier in the month, said in an interview with the club’s official website. “This is the club I want to stay at and be here as long as possible.
“When I was told, all I wanted to do was sign the contract. It feels good. Now I just want to carry on and hopefully show the manager what I can do. I think there is loads of room for improvement. I’ve just got to keep working in training every day.”
Woodburn has been with Liverpool since he joined the club’s academy at the U7 level, and as a 15-year-old he was fast tracked into the U18 program such was the gap between him and the rest of the players at the younger levels of the academy.
He saw his senior debut as a 17-year-old against Sunderland last November, and became the club’s record youngest goalscorer just three days later against Leeds United in the League Cup. All told, he has made ten total first team appearances.
The young attacker also began his journey to becoming a key player for Wales this year, making four appearances in competitive action for the country he represents and scoring a goal that, for a time, kept their World Cup qualification dreams alive.
“I think I’ve grown as a player and matured physically and technically, and grown in confidence,” he added. “For the rest of this season, hopefully I will get some more appearances for the first team and progress in the U19s Champions League.”