Will Hughes

[peekay]

He is different type of player than Shelvey but £12m, if that is what he'll cost, is just not smart.

We already spent about £15m on Alberto and Ilori just this transfer window and neither of them are getting any minutes and Hughes will not be any different. Not yet at least.

Buying for future makes sense but we have to careful as many just don't make it and also we need to have a plan in place to give these players tons and tons of playing opportunities, which is key for their development by either keeping them at the club we purchased them from for sometime or loan them out and we are not really doing that well at the moment.

I agree with you on that spending 15m on Alberto and Ilori does not make any sense given the lack of first team opportunities.

I have not watched him but judging on people whose opinion I respect, Hughes appears to be closer to Coutinho bracket in terms of talent than Alberto. A player who can make a difference immediately with significant scope to improve.

[Reece]

I can't say I've seen him for Derby, but when I've seen him for England U21s I've been really impressed and would love it if we signed him.

Love it.

[Corndog]

Will is much better than those two and he has one quality on the ball that our Bren loves above all else...


Bravery on the ball.

I have only seen one live game and some championship highlights and he does look promising but Mostar makes a good point, at the time Zaha and Wickham were put into the same category, everybody was after them.

I disagree that you can confidently say Hughes is better than those two until he makes it in the prem. Zaha did appear like a young Cristiano Ronaldo at times, skinning players for fun.

[Mattshark]

Some of you have it totally wrong on Will Hughes. Seriously. To even mention the kid in the same breath as Zaha and Shelvey is ridiculous. I remember some on here pissing and moaning that we didnt sign Zaha at the price he went for. Wont admit it now. If Hughes was playing at Schalke or some other foreign club, you'd all be up for this

I agree with Mr M. This kid is the real deal and he is a huge Liverpool fan. You'll be crying if he ends up at Utd or Arsenal because it will really be one that got away

He's been watched by top European clubs regularly, including Barcelona on quite a few occasions. He has great technique. Not afraid to tackle and not scared of the ball. He has that bravery Rodgers wants in his players, to keep the ball and pick a pass.

We can all say 'yeah but its only the Championship' but that is one seriously tough league and very physical. This kid is pretty slight but he has held his own. Said it before, he will get games here next season if he signs .

It is also technically poor compared to the premiership and the quality of opposition is far lower. Plenty of players look very good in the championship and end up being far from good enough in the premier league. It is perfectly understandable for people to be sceptical about the him.

[marcus50bucks]

Have no idea why people are writing Zaha off. He's a talent, give him time.

[marcus50bucks]

It is also technically poor compared to the premiership and the quality of opposition is far lower. Plenty of players look very good in the championship and end up being far from good enough in the premier league. It is perfectly understandable for people to be sceptical about the him.

I agree. Whilst I think Hughes is a talented player it's understandable people have reservations.

[Robbie-9-Fowler]

Some of you have it totally wrong on Will Hughes. Seriously. To even mention the kid in the same breath as Zaha and Shelvey is ridiculous. I remember some on here pissing and moaning that we didnt sign Zaha at the price he went for. Wont admit it now. If Hughes was playing at Schalke or some other foreign club, you'd all be up for this

I agree with Mr M. This kid is the real deal and he is a huge Liverpool fan. You'll be crying if he ends up at Utd or Arsenal because it will really be one that got away

He's been watched by top European clubs regularly, including Barcelona on quite a few occasions. He has great technique. Not afraid to tackle and not scared of the ball. He has that bravery Rodgers wants in his players, to keep the ball and pick a pass.

We can all say 'yeah but its only the Championship' but that is one seriously tough league and very physical. This kid is pretty slight but he has held his own. Said it before, he will get games here next season if he signs .

Not really a comparison, he's playing in the Championship and not in the top division on a major European league. I like Hughes but I completely understand why some people are worried, especially at £12m or whatever is being banded about.

[Fredo]

Definitely a loan move if we signed him. Only seen Hughes few times and he did look decent... massive step up though & price will probably be ridiculous.

wasted development

ridiculous and frankly bit baffling.

Very much so

completely agree

"If" £12 million is the figure that is insane. Now if it's a case where we have another bucket load of cash to spend on players that will come straight into the first team & fill positions we need in the now, that's fair enough... but i doubt it. If true it's massive gamble.

Bafflingly ridiculous and insanely insane.

[Mostar]

I agree with you on that spending 15m on Alberto and Ilori does not make any sense given the lack of first team opportunities.

I have not watched him but judging on people whose opinion I respect, Hughes appears to be closer to Coutinho bracket in terms of talent than Alberto. A player who can make a difference immediately with significant scope to improve.

I like both Alberto and Hughes it is the price tag in case of Will and lack of playing opportunties for both that I am worried about as money is not a finite resource.

Will is a talented player but I am not sure he is the player that will be able to make an immediate impact and personally I'd like to see us spend money in January on a player that will be able to do just that.

Time will tell I suppose.

[Mostar]

Not really a comparison, he's playing in the Championship and not in the top division on a major European league. I like Hughes but I completely understand why some people are worried, especially at £12m or whatever is being banded about.

[MrMichael]

It is also technically poor compared to the premiership and the quality of opposition is far lower. Plenty of players look very good in the championship and end up being far from good enough in the premier league. It is perfectly understandable for people to be sceptical about the him.

Fair points, but you can't deny the physicality of that league, and for Will to have been playing as much as he has, in the position that he has, and most importantly in the way that he has, is a massively encouraging thing for anyone looking at signing him. The rest you can see just by watching him play, I can't overemphasise how mature I think his game is already. Nothing is a sure thing in football and £12m is sure a lot of money for an 18yr old, but I really think he is the real deal in a major way.

[danperkins]

Imo Will Hughes is the most impressive up and coming midfield talent I've seen play in this country in years. I really don't understand what people think would be a non-insane fee for someone of his talent and am quite, quite sure that if we refused to pay that much, in a couple of seasons everyone would be kicking off about us having been unwilling to show some ambition while Hughes is busy dominating the midfield for one of our rivals.

Didn't you want us to pay £30m for Lamela? (guaranteed to be on bigger wages too). So why is a third of that for Hughes insane?

No doubts Will Hughes is talented but it's a massive step up. It will depend on the fee for me.. i just feel that we should be buying for the now & players that can help our first team this season. So many so called talents don't make the grade when they make the step up.

As regards Lamela.. he was superb for Roma in Serie A & is Argie international.. no comparison. Clearly Lamela is struggling to adapt to the league.... which is great

We have had a great start and come January if we are still there and there abouts... it could be our best chance in years to make a push for the champs league spots if we add to the first team. If we spend on Hughes & still have funds to buy players that will affect our first team this season...happy days.

[danperkins]

Don't think anyone would mind if we have the right funds to spend elsewhere. Don't think anyone is saying Hughes is ****.. just that we have priorities. Interesting to see what funds we have available.

[Slinky Skills]

In the little I've seen of him he looks quality, a real talent. Very very good on the ball, comfortable and has great passing.

Reminds me very much of Jack Wilshere in the way he plays and we know how talented that lad is.

Really hope we get him.

[Ams12]

Not sure about all his stats, but 4 goals so far this season from his position is a good return. In the games I've seen him play however (and I've seen a few, mostly last season), he has great touch & close control, real vision, and he can tackle too. More than anything however what impressed me so much was his willingness to receive the ball and comfort on it. Where players many years older may hide in games, Hughes is always making himself available; at just 18 everything Derby do as a team goes through him. In many ways he is the opposite of your typical English midfielder and would not look at all out of place in say, a Spanish team.

While he is not necessarily the exact same sort of player as Stevie G was when he broke through, I genuinely think Hughes is another unique talent with that same level of potential and we should pull out all the stops to get him.

It is fairly obvious the kid has some talent and it is encouraging reading the positives you & others have mentioned. I hope he can make that step up without too much trouble & help LFC achieve great things over the coming years! Also good to see he is a LFC fan

MrM