Liverpool 3-0 Southampton: Jurgen Klopp’s kids keep quadruple dream alive as debutant Lewis Koumas – son of Welsh cult hero Jason – and Jayden Danns send Reds through to FA Cup quarter-final clash with Man United

a A young group of ball boys from Liverpool’s youth academy had the honor of parading around the pitch with the Carabao Cup trophy before this match as Anfield celebrated an unforgettable triumph.

However, those twelve-year-olds were too young even for this makeshift Reds side.

But if the last fortnight has done one thing, it is to make those kids believe that, with hard work and perseverance, they too will pull on the red Liverpool shirt in major stadiums from Anfield to Wembley and have the chance to play a to make a piece of Reds. history.

After a handful of teenagers did just that in last week’s cup final, in what Jurgen Klopp described as his most ‘special’ achievement in twenty years of management, it was Lewis Koumas’ turn last night to see his dreams come true.

As well as making his Liverpool debut, Koumas scored the opening goal of what threatened to be a banana peel match against a well-coached Southampton side as Klopp’s men staged a mouth-watering quarter-final against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Almost like a fairytale movie, more and more dreams continued to come true for the children at Anfield as Jayden Danns came off the bench in the second half and scored eleven minutes later with a lovely chip to put this tie to bed, before Trey Nyoni, just 16, it made his Liverpool bow.

Just a fortnight ago, eight members of Liverpool’s matchday squad played together in front of just 169 punters in an under-21 match against Stoke at the AXA Training Centre. It was a whirlwind for the Reds’ youngsters who were suddenly thrown into the deep end.

But Sunday’s Carabao Cup win at Wembley showed they are more than capable of keeping their heads above water, and some of those who made impressive cameos against Chelsea were rewarded with a starting place here, such as midfielders Bobby Clark and James McConnell.

Six of Liverpool’s eleven players were aged 21 or under on this visit to Southampton, who made eight substitutions themselves. The youngest player of the Kindergarten Kop was the young attacker Lewis Koumas, who scored twelve goals in fifteen youth matches this season.

Wales Under-19 international Koumas – like Clark whose father Lee, a Newcastle legend, was watching in the stands – has a famous former footballer for a father. Ex-Cardiff and Wigan midfielder Jason has led a quiet life since his retirement, unlike his son who made noise all night long.

Koumas was the favorite of the Liverpool Stallions here, even before his goal to open the scoring on the stroke of half-time, with a livewire performance on the left wing. Like many young strikers, he tried to make something happen every time the ball came to him.

After some tricky darts into the penalty area went nowhere, Koumas got the moment he’d probably dreamed of every week since joining the Reds from Tranmere at the age of 11, when his shot from 20 yards wrong-footed Saints keeper Joe Lumley .

It was not lost that the man who would help him achieve that goal was Clark, a year older than the 18-year-old Koumas, but a long-term teammate of the Chester-born star. The two came together again a few minutes later and Koumas almost pinned through Cody Gakpo, but the Dutchman’s finish was poor.

However, until that flurry at the end of the first half, the Championship side were on a roll. Saints had the ball in the net with less than 40 seconds on the clock and although the ball was flagged for offside and ruled out, that set the pace for much of the early exchanges.

With star player Adam Armstrong, who has sixteen goals and eleven assists to his name in the second tier, starting the match on the bench along with many senior colleagues, Russell Martin’s side were often left lacking in end product, while keeping Liverpool open on countless occasions.

Ghanaian winger Kamaldeen Sulemana, the fastest player at the 2022 World Cup according to sprint speed data, exploited the space behind the Reds backline and hit the post after five minutes, before Sekou Mara was denied three times by cup final hero Caoimhin Kelleher.

But Saints’ much-changed team faded in the second half and Liverpool only looked to extend their lead, which they did in the 73rd minute when Danns broke through and dribbled the ball over Lumley.

The son of former Premier League footballer Neil, who is now assistant manager at local League Two team Tranmere, then added his second to round off an evening of proud moments. After 88 minutes with a poacher’s finish after Conor Bradley’s shot was parried.