Liverpool’s decision to award Conor Bradley a new four-year contract signifies just how vital he could be to the club’s long-term future.
The Reds announced on Saturday that the Northern Irishman has penned a new deal, a deserved reward for two excellent seasons under Jurgen Klopp and Arne Slot. Both have spoken glowing about Bradley in that time, with the 21-year-old playing an increasingly important role in the team.
He has now made 55 senior appearances for the club – a tally that could significantly increase in the years to come. With Trent Alexander-Arnold set to depart at the end of the season, Slot already has a ready-made solution waiting in the wings.
“The experience I have – and this club as well – is that if a very good player is leaving, the next very good player will step up, and that is probably what is going to happen now,” Slot said last week, adding that Bradley is a “very talented player”, who has a bright future at Anfield.
There is one concern, though: the defender’s patchy injury record. Slot even acknowledged that ahead of the Arsenal game. “To become a very good player you have to be available every week and that is the first step he has to take next season,” said the Dutchman, in reference to Bradley’s development.
Across the last two seasons, six different injuries have forced Bradley to miss games. But, speaking after he penned his new deal, Liverpool’s no.84 hinted those issues won’t impact him in the future, stating that physically he feels fitter than ever.
“I think more than anything, I’m just growing into my body a bit more now. I feel a lot more physically strong, I feel quicker, I feel more powerful – and I think that’s really helping me when I do play games,” the Northern Ireland international told LFCTV.
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“I think there’s massive improvement from this time last year, and hopefully I can keep going on that trajectory and just keep getting better.
“I just want to keep improving, keep getting better every day. I just want to try to maximise whatever my potential is and try to be the best version of myself. Hopefully, I can do that in the years to come and just keep getting better.”
Whoever becomes first-choice right-back next season – whether that’s Bradley, Jeremie Frimpong, or a mixture of both – he will need to try and restore some of the creativity that will inevitably be lost when Alexander-Arnold departs.
Bradley has provided just one Premier League assist all season, but feels it’s important to contribute more goalscoring actions next term.
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“I probably want to add more assists and goals to my game – obviously I’ve had a few,” he said. “But defending as well I want to get better [at]. To be honest, probably just everywhere. I just want to keep striving to be better at everything and just keep doing as well as I can.”
As talented as Alexander-Arnold undoubtedly is, there was always a sense Liverpool had to make accommodations for his unique style. That won’t be the case with Bradley, a more conventional full-back, in the team.
“I’ve loved playing under it [Slot’s style] this season. It’s been really good and I feel like it suits me really well, because I definitely feel like I’ve played better this season than I did last season. I feel like I’m improving under the new boss. It’s been really good and hopefully it continues.
