Irish football legend Shay Given has delivered some candid advice to Caoimhin Kelleher, suggesting it’s time for the keeper to pack his bags at Liverpool. The revered ex-Manchester City and Newcastle stopper has seen world-class potential in Kelleher.
However, he firmly believes that to reach that level, Kelleher needs to emerge from Alisson Becker’s sizable presence at Anfield.
With Alisson out due to a hamstring issue, Kelleher is back between the sticks, yet Liverpool manager Arne Slot has made it clear: once his lead man’s fit, Kelleher is benched again.
Given told The Mirror: “Caoimhin played 26 games last season and in that time he showed that he has the talent to be a No. 1 in the Premier League. But he turns 26 later this month and, if I am brutally honest, he needs to get away from Liverpool if he wants that to happen.
Every professional footballer has to have that hope that if they get a place in the team and perform well then they will keep the jersey. Caoimhin hasn’t got that. It has been made clear to him that he will always be behind Alisson – and let’s be honest he is up against a guy who is one of the best in the world.”
The conversation around Kelleher’s future at Liverpool is heating up as he approaches his 26th birthday. There’s a growing sentiment that the time has come for him to move on from Anfield, not out of disrespect to the club, but because his talent is too great to be held back any longer.
“Caoimhin turns 26 later this month. He’s done his time at Liverpool. That’s no disrespect to a brilliant club but they are now starting to think that they can’t hold Kelleher back for much longer because he is a quality player,” Given added.”Blackburn offered me a new contract which would have been much better for me financially – but I said ‘no’ because Tim Flowers was England’s No 1 and he was a brilliant keeper. I was only 21 but I wanted to play football – and to do that I knew my career lay elsewhere.”
“Caoimhin is five years older and he’s now at a stage where he has to be playing every single week. I look at him and think ‘this guy’s the real deal. He proved last season over a long period of time that he is top quality. I’m sure there’s a number of Premier League clubs who are looking at him.
