Liverpool U21s 0-1 Middlesbrough U21s: Match Report & Barry Lewtas | OneFootball

By Dan Clubbe

It was a wholly frustrating afternoon at the AXA for Liverpool’s Under 21s as a strong Reds’ side were beaten by a resilient Middlesbrough outfit despite dominating almost the entire contest.

The likes of James McConnell, Trey Nyoni and Harvey Davies all featured for Barry Lewtas’ side, however, it was to be a story of collective wastefulness that would steal the show

Liverpool now sit 11th in Premier League 2 with a home clash against West Ham United up next.

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Following an even start it was Liverpool who started to force their way into the ascendency with McConnell finding Trent Kone-Doherty in behind with a delightful chipped pass, only for the young winger’s effort to be parried behind for a corner.

Further chances came for Ranel Young and Rio Ngumoha before the sucker punch to top all sucker punches arrived as captain Amara Nallo inadvertently diverted a header beyond Davies when trying to clear.

The Reds responded well to the setback and Kieran Morrison tested Shea Connor from range as the half-time whistle arrived with Lewtas’ side trailing at the 45-minute mark.

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A stop-start second half eventually saw Liverpool wrestle complete control once again and it was only the brilliance of an inspired Connor on multiple occasions that denied the hosts that elusive equaliser.

A Nallo header clipped the crossbar late on before a Morrison once again found a red shirt inside the area, this time Keyrol Figueroa nodding over with the last action of the contest, when your luck’s out, your luck is out and it certainly was for the mini-Reds despite the best efforts of the attacking prowess available.

Barry Lewtas

On the performance: “That maybe sums up us this season. Today was maybe the most frustrating. We said to the player, we’ve got to be better, we’ve got to finish the chances. Frustrating one. The reality is we’ve only got ourselves to blame.”

On how to improve in front of goal: “We created big chances inside the six-yard box, we can’t really do much more. On another day we could score four or five today, with a bit more composure.”

On Kieran Morrison playing in midfield: “Sometimes being able to be flexible and adaptable, having other strings to your bow is a good thing. We’ve seen it now at first team level, Curtis and Dom. We do want to win, but the reality is we’re here to develop players and get them ready to make that step up.”

Lewtas complimented his sides’ overall display, in particular Nyoni and McConnell who managed to dictate terms in the middle of the park despite an ultimately disappointing result.