Curtis Jones‘ name was readily heard throughout training on pre-season day three, with the midfielder making an early impression on his new head coach.
Jones started just one of Liverpool’s last six games of the season and was named in England’s preliminary squad for the Euros before he took off on his summer break.
The 23-year-old was among the first to report back for pre-season, and footage from day three under Arne Slot offered a positive indication of his intentions in the coming campaign.
In game situations on the outdoor pitches at the AXA Training Centre, Jones featured heavily with his pressing and finishing, which was lauded by his team-mates and the coaching staff.
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 7, 2024
“Good timing, Curtis,” and “good work rate” freely came from the sidelines as Slot and his assistant, Sipke Hulshoff, watched on and called out throughout.
The head coach could be heard name-checking “Curtis” multiple times throughout Sunday’s session, filmed by the club’s cameras, whether for praise or instruction – could we have a new teacher’s pet on our hands?
The dressing room always joked Alexis Mac Allister quickly became Jurgen Klopp‘s, so do not discount it!
After injury saw his 2023/24 season fizzle out, a full pre-season will be a welcome boost for Jones and Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp noted his importance to the side in January when lauding his off-ball work, saying: “His pressing, counter-pressing, meanwhile, he sets the level, actually, how it should look.”
Pre-season day 3
Arne in action ? pic.twitter.com/70YWiHvw6W
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 7, 2024
The Reds had 30 players report for day three on Sunday, a squad boosted by academy players with 15 senior players either on holiday or still competing in an international tournament.
Jayden Danns, Lewis Koumas, Calum Scanlon, Harvey Blair, Trey Nyoni, Amara Nallo, Kieran Morrison and Dominic Corness were among the academy contingent.
Harvey Elliott was involved in the session, while Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo are only to report at the start of the coming week.
The squad took part in exercises inside the AXA Training Centre before getting the balls out on the outside pitches for competitive drills.
