Liverpool winger transfers to Spanish club

Liverpool youngster Elijah Gift looks to be heading to Spain this summer for a fee said to be around £1 million. The 16-year-old has been targeted by Athletic Bilbao after an impressive spell in Liverpool’s youth ranks. Talks between the two clubs are at an “advanced stage” and it appears that the Spanish side have been able to prize the prospect away from Liverpool due to the depth of quality in his position and the size of the fee. The rise of Ben Doak, Harvey Blair, Trent Kone-Doherty and Ranel Young are all also showing promising signs of development in that area of the pitch, leaving the academy healthily stocked in attacking areas. Gift was born in the Spanish town of Corella, placing him in line with Athletic Club’s unwritten policy of only signing players of Basque origin. This rule places a premium for Athletic Club on players from that region, which will have been factored into the eventual price for the player. The forward joined the Reds at under-12s level and has gone on to make 18 appearances in all competitions for the under-18s in 2022/23. Only eight of those came as a starter, however, with the majority of his 959 minutes coming as a substitute for Marc Bridge-Wilkinson’s side. It looks likely that Liverpool youngster Elijah Gift will be heading to Spain this summer for a fee said to be around £1 million. Athletic Bilbao have been targeting him due to his impressive spell in Liverpool’s youth ranks and talks between the two clubs are at an “advanced stage”. The depth of quality in his position and the size of the fee have allowed the Spanish side to prize him away from Liverpool. The rise of Ben Doak, Harvey Blair, Trent Kone-Doherty and Ranel Young have also left the academy healthily stocked in attacking areas. Additionally, Gift’s birthplace in the Spanish town of Corella fits with Athletic Club’s unwritten policy of only signing players of Basque origin, which will have been factored into the eventual price for the player. He has made 18 appearances in all competitions for the under-18s in 2022/23, with only eight of those coming as a starter and the majority of his 959 minutes coming as a substitute for Marc Bridge-Wilkinson’s side.