Liverpool U18s Draw Opening Game in SuperCupNI Thanks to Keyrol Figueroa’s Rocket
Liverpool’s Keyrol Figueroa has picked up from where he left off last season, scoring a rocket as the under-18s drew their opening game in the SuperCupNI. The SuperCupNI, formerly the NI Milk Cup, is a week-long youth football tournament held in Northern Ireland – the Reds first competed in 1987.
This time around, Marc Bridge-Wilkinson has taken his side to first compete against Valencia, Man United and Hertha Berlin in the group stage. The young Reds’ first match was against Valencia on Monday night and Figueroa looked bright from the off, unfortunate not to get his side on the scoresheet early.
Figueroa Scores Absolute Rocket
The 16-year-old more than made up for it, though, in the second half, scoring an absolute rocket into the roof of the net from long-range after some quick movement from Liverpool in midfield. Take a look for yourself, it was a beauty!
U.S. u-17 prospect, Keyrol Figueroa, scored an absolute rocket for the Liverpool u-18 yesterday. ???
The match ended 1-1 against Valencia’s u-18.[?: @newguayork]pic.twitter.com/4UqWXbDpc1
— USMNT Otaku ?? (@USMNTOtaku) July 25, 2023
It was more than worthy of being the winning goal but the Spanish side did not agree, levelling just 11 minutes later after finally finding a breakthrough after sustained pressure throughout the match.
Figueroa Enjoying Prolific 2023
Figueroa – a familiar name due to his father, Maynor, former Wigan defender – was the focal point for the Reds and it is no wonder, the young forward has enjoyed a prolific 2023 to date. For club and country, Figueroa scored 12 goals in 24 games to end last season and with more time with the U18s to come in 2023/24, he has started strongly.
His goal has added a point to Liverpool’s tally, behind Hertha in the table after their 2-1 victory over Man United – who the Reds play next on Wednesday evening.
Reds Hoping for First Tournament Win Since 1988
It is a competitive start to the academy’s pre-season preparations and here’s hoping they can go on to be a tournament winner for the first time since 1988. Liverpool U18s: Morana, Gyimah (Davidson 45′), Esdaille, Osborne (Pinnington 45′), Furnell-Gill, Kelly, Bradshaw (Morrison 45′), Pennington, Kone-Doherty, Danns (Ahmed 45′), Figueroa. Subs not used: Misciur, Wellity, Pitt.
The SuperCupNI is an excellent opportunity for Liverpool’s U18s to test themselves against some of Europe’s best youth teams and with Keyrol Figueroa leading the line, they have a great chance of success. His rocket goal against Valencia was a sign of things to come and if he can continue his good form throughout the tournament, then Liverpool could be celebrating their first tournament win since 1988.