Hamann points to £25m Liverpool waste in ‘top five or six’ claim; reveals ‘sensational’ Gerrard prophecy
Didi Hamann has hailed the performances of Caoimhin Kelleher for Liverpool this season and revealed a prophecy Steve Gerrard made over a ‘sensational’ Reds star.
Kelleher has been in sparkling form in the absence of Alisson this season, keeping five clean sheets in his ten games, conceding just seven goals.
The Republic of Ireland international was angling for a move in the summer as he made no secret of his desire to be No.1, with Liverpool spending £25m on Giorgi Mamardashvili – who’s remained with Valencia on loan this season – adding to the 26-year-old’s frustration.
Arne Slot and Liverpool will be very pleased he remained at Anfield and Hamann reckons Kelleher is one of the best in the Premier League and suggested he should be above Mamardashvili in the pecking order – as No.1 if Alisson leaves – when the new goalkeeper arrives.
Hamann told Genting Casino: “In Kelleher, I think they’ve got probably one of the top five or six keepers in the Premier League. You certainly won’t find a better No. 2. I think he’s got to play at some stage, which probably means he might get the No. 1 jersey in the summer.
“We know that the Georgian keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili will join in the summer, so there will be competition there. I would stick with Kelleher.
“Obviously, Alisson, I think when he does come back, he probably plays, but I think he’s only one injury away from losing his place because Kelleher is a brilliant keeper and then in the summer, there are rumours suggesting that the Brazilian might be on his way.”
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Hamann has also been impressed by the displays of Curtis Jones in recent weeks and revealed that Steven Gerrard – who coached the England international in the Liverpool academy – told him long ago that the 23-year-old was destined for greatness.
Hamann added: “I’ve been watching Curtis Jones for a number of years now. He must have been in and around the team now for four or five years. I wasn’t too sure whether he was capable of being a regular for Liverpool, but he’s proved me completely wrong.
“He’s 23 now. When I came into the first team at Bayern, I was 20. in Bayern Munich. Physically, I wasn’t ready. I probably needed 12 months to get used to training, the pace of the game, everything.
“Jones has been excellent and that is also to do with his confidence. He probably didn’t feel part of the team before because he was a bit-part player, but now we’ve seen the real Curtis Jones.
“Obviously, Steven Gerrard coached him in the academy. He’s been a huge admirer of him, and he said to me years ago to watch this kid because he’ll be a superstar. Sometimes you’ve got to give people time, and more often than not, they don’t get time at the giant clubs.
“You have to take your hat off to how Liverpool have managed him. There would have been numerous occasions where he could have gone on loan for 12 months, but they decided it was better for him to stay and continue his education at Liverpool.
“I think he could be a huge player, not only for Liverpool, but also for England. He set up a goal against Leverkusen where he played a through-ball. I don’t think there’s too many players in world football who would see the pass and would play the pass. It was absolutely sensational. ”
