Ben Woodburn\u2019s goal and assist for Wales in their qualifying matches against Austria and Moldova\u00a0has propelled him to national attention. Liverpool\u2019s previously\u00a0little-known youth player is now on the back page of every newspaper in the nation.<\/p>\n
Woodburn is only 17 years old, and had not yet played 90 minutes in the Premier League, but\u00a0he made himself a Welsh hero\u00a0just four minutes into his debut for the national side. Entering\u00a0the game as a 70th minute substitute while the last strains of the Welsh national anthem rang around the stadium, his 20 yard shot, barely his third touch of the ball, flew into the bottom corner of the Austrian goalkeeper\u2019s net and raised the roof off the Millennium Stadium.<\/p>\n
Woodburn is far from the first player to mark\u00a0his international\u00a0debut with a goal. This does not guarantee future success. The likes of\u00a0Francis Jeffers and David Nugent scored at the first attempt, only for their career to disappear. Much more impressive than the strike, and therefore more indicative of his potential,\u00a0was the performance that surrounded it. Woodburn lit up a lacklustre Welsh side and injected energy and pace into their attack.<\/p>\n
What makes\u00a0the youngster\u00a0so good is hard to lay a finger upon. He isn\u2019t fast; he isn’t flashy; he is not physically strong. He certainly cannot be compared to Wales’ star man, Gareth Bale. But while Bale has been his country’s answer to Cristiano Ronaldo, perhaps\u00a0with his diminutive stature, low centre of gravity and ability to drift past players, Woodburn might be able to draw at least some comparisons to Lionel Messi over the course of his career.<\/p>\n
What was so impressive was that\u00a0the 17-year-old\u00a0repeated his\u00a0efforts a\u00a0mere three days later. Although the match was against Moldova, not one of football’s heavyweights, Wales were\u00a0once again struggling to break down an opposition side,\u00a0only for Woodburn to come on and make\u00a0the difference. His positive run down the wing and subsequent cross was turned into the net by Hal Robson-Kanu and gave\u00a0the Welsh a\u00a0much-needed breakthrough.<\/p>\n
The contribution of the young man, who chose Wales over England, cannot be underestimated. In three days he has assisted directly in revitalising Welsh qualification for the 2018 World Cup. Ireland\u2019s defeat against Serbia means that, with only two games remaining,\u00a0Woodburn and co.\u00a0have a real chance to clinch the runners-up spot in their group.<\/p>\n
This overnight\u00a0renown presents an issue faced by many young players. Marcus Rashford, another precocious talent, helped salvage a win in a poor performance by England the night before Woodburn burst onto the scene. Rashford and Dele Alli before him have had the hopes of a nation thrust onto their young shoulders, and English and\u00a0Welsh fans alike\u00a0will be hoping that their prospects will continue to thrive even as the weight of expectation begins to grow around them.<\/p>\n
The quality in Woodburn’s two displays will come as little surprise to Liverpool fans. J\u00fcrgen Klopp allowed\u00a0the 17-year-old a few\u00a0tastes of first-team action last season, for which he was repaid with a goal.\u00a0Woodburn’s strike, against Leeds, made him\u00a0the club’s\u00a0youngest ever goal scorer, taking the record from Michael Owen. His subsequent cameos and pre-season performances made him one to watch.<\/p>\n
Attempts by a number of clubs to tempt Liverpool into loaning <\/a>out Woodburn were rejected, and it seems that Klopp sees the youngster as playing a role in the first team this year. With the club competing in four competitions this season,\u00a0many youth prospects\u00a0may well be presented with a chance to demonstrate\u00a0their ability in the near future.<\/p>\n Woodburn\u2019s performance for Wales will not have done his chances at Liverpool any harm. He has gained valuable experience from being in the national set-up and\u00a0the subsequent playing time will only aid in his development. Klopp is not a manager who is scared to play youth team players, but he\u00a0will be\u00a0equally determined to keep the youngster out of the media spotlight to allow him to develop his skills.<\/p>\n If Woodburn\u2019s performances on the pitch continue as they are,\u00a0the manager\u00a0will have little choice but to play him. So far, every time he has been tested, he has stepped up and proved himself. If he carries on in his development, Woodburn could well end the year as a member of the\u00a0first-team and on the plane to the World Cup.<\/p>\n Main PhotoOpportunity Knocks<\/h2>\n
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>