Rio Ferdinand urges Dominic Solanke to quit Liverpool
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Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has urged Dominic Solanke to leave Liverpool in the near future for the good of his career.
The 21-year-old has only managed five Premier League starts since leaving Chelsea on a free transfer last season and is yet to feature in a matchday squad this term.
With Liverpool's attackers of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané showing no signs of weakness, Solanke has had to settle for a bit-part role on Merseyside.
And Ferdinand believes the England U-21 striker will not get the opportunity to play enough by staying at Anfield.
Speaking on BT Sport, the former England international said:
Ferdinand mentioned Solanke when discussing the difficulty young English players face to make it at top Premier League clubs.
Solanke has won the 2014 European U-17 Championship and the 2017 U-20 World Cup with England and received the Golden Ball award for best player in the latter tournament.
The 21-year-old has only managed five Premier League starts since leaving Chelsea on a free transfer last season and is yet to feature in a matchday squad this term.
With Liverpool's attackers of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané showing no signs of weakness, Solanke has had to settle for a bit-part role on Merseyside.
And Ferdinand believes the England U-21 striker will not get the opportunity to play enough by staying at Anfield.
Speaking on BT Sport, the former England international said:
Players are sitting on the bench now who are £50 million players.
The pathway for these young players to the first team is so difficult because of the investment that's going on.
Solanke is sitting [on the bench] at Liverpool, he was sitting at Chelsea.
He has gone to Liverpool for opportunities and he's not getting that. He has got to get out.
If I'm a young sitting on the bench, or in the stands or not even travelling, I'm banging down the manager's door and asking if I'm playing or not.
Ferdinand mentioned Solanke when discussing the difficulty young English players face to make it at top Premier League clubs.
Obviously the players are not good enough [for these teams].
The young kids like [Phil] Foden, [Ruben] Loftus-Cheek and Solanke who are winning tournaments for England at youth level, if they're good enough they'll be playing.
It's such a lucrative game for these [club] managers and their jobs are on the edge every single game, and they want players who are going to win instantly.
These players obviously aren't being blooded properly.
Solanke has won the 2014 European U-17 Championship and the 2017 U-20 World Cup with England and received the Golden Ball award for best player in the latter tournament.
