2 weeks ago
49
Ex-Liverpool protege Ben Woodburn has revealed the impact David Beckham and Gary Neville have had on his career.
Woodburn made headlines in November 2016 when he became Liverpool’s youngest-ever scorer after netting against Leeds United in November 2016, a stat that has since been eclipsed by Rio Ngumoha.
Woodburn remains among Liverpool’s youngest debutants and is the second-youngest player to represent the Welsh national team. But his early promise didn’t quite materialize into the elite-level career he and others hoped for.
The midfielder had four underwhelming loan spells away from Liverpool before leaving permanently in 2022, when he joined Preston North End. In 2024, he signed for Salford City, which boasts Neville and Beckham among its nine shareholders, while their former ‘Class of ‘92’ team-mates continue to play an active role in the day-to-day club operations.
“You can tell how passionate they are about the project,” Woodburn told the Manchester Evening News, when asked about the Manchester United legends. “I’ve not seen anything like that with a football club before, so it is it's really nice.
“You can just tell how much they love it. It's like it's like their baby and they just want us to do so well and yeah, it is nice when you've got owners who are who are quite invested in the club.”
It has been a long journey from precocious Liverpool talent to League Two regular, but, at 26, Woodburn feels he has finally settled.
“It's been good for me. I've got to live at home. It's been nice. I enjoy playing here, enjoy the fans, enjoy the manager, the group of lads, so yeah, I can't complain really,” he said.
“I think I've always just wanted to feel part of a team where I'm really involved and here I definitely feel that.
“I think I've always been at my best in my career when I've played game after game. When I'm not taking breaks in between or being on the bench, that's when I kind of get out of rhythm. When I'm constantly playing, I think that's when I play my best football.”
Reflecting on his time at Liverpool, the Welshman added: “I went on a few loans where I didn’t play as many games as I needed to. I stumbled in my career at that point. When you’re not playing and other kids are playing, they’re going to get better and better.
“I learnt a lot from going on those loans, but it probably wasn’t ideal that I wasn’t playing all the time at 17 and 18.
“I didn’t play too much for half a season at Sheffield United. Then I got injured, so I wasn’t even training back at Liverpool. Oxford, I got injured for six months. It’s hard to get going again after getting injured and not really playing.”
English (US) ·