Tuesday 8 January 2019 09:49, UK
Ki-Jana Hoever made Liverpool history against Wolves in the FA Cup, but who is the highly-rated 16-year-old? We take a look...
Following a rapid rise through the youth ranks, Hoever came off the bench in Liverpool's FA Cup defeat to Wolves, becoming the the youngest player ever to play for Liverpool in the FA Cup, and their third youngest ever.
Dejan Lovren's early injury at Molineux saw Hoever get the call, with Nathaniel Clyne's departure for Bournemouth, along with the injuries to Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, leaving Jurgen Klopp with few other options.
But who is this defender born in 2002? Here we give you the lowdown on the latest Liverpool protege to get his chance.
Hoever joined Liverpool in the summer having failed to sign a senior deal at Ajax. He had previously been with the AZ Alkmaar academy, and since his move to England, things have moved very, very quickly.
The youngster made his first Liverpool appearance for the U18s against Newcastle on September 15, a match Liverpool won 4-1, before coming off the bench in the UEFA Youth League in Liverpool's 5-2 over Red Star Belgrade three days later.
A first Youth League start was a successful one in a 5-0 rout of Napoli, before a real learning curve came in November as he also made his debut at U23 level, part of an inexperienced Liverpool side hammered 7-0 by Villarreal.
The performance that made everyone stand up and take notice came just four days after the Villarreal humbling, though, came against Everton U23s in Premier League 2, as he stood head and shoulders above everyone else in a 1-0 win for Liverpool.
Hoever has made further appearances at right-back for the U23s and earned rave reviews for his part in the 4-1 thumping of reigning Premier League 2 champions Arsenal last month, too.
Hoever is very much the modern defender, with the comparisons with Van Dijk common place. His composure on the ball has been a stand-out feature of his time on the pitch, both in and out of possession.
Like Van Dijk, he is extremely confident on the ball, which no doubt stems from his formation as a right-back. He moves forward well, is unafraid to rove infield and dictate passes from central areas, but doesn't shirk his defensive duties.
It has been typical of Hoever's progression that he has scored three goals in five appearances for the Netherlands U17s.
Tall, fast, composed, comfortable in possession, with fine distribution and impressive awareness, the teenager has made it difficult for Liverpool to keep a lid on his bubbling potential.
Jurgen Klopp: "If Joel (Matip) and Joe (Gomez) would have been fit all the time now then probably Ki-Jana would not have been in training. Now he was in and still is in, it's just a joy to watch him.
"He's an incredible, confident, young fella and he's really a good player on top. That we can see him day in, day out is really cool."
Barry Lewtas, coach of Liverpool's U18s, shortly after Hoever's arrival: "I don't want to sell him too much. He's early in his journey here, he'll take some time to adapt.
"What I can say is that he's trained really well and I know he's going to fit in really well. We are all keeping our feet on the floor with him. He's still got a lot to do, sometimes you can ride the wave when you first get into teams, but he knows it's a long process. He's very mature, he's a good boy and he knows he's got lots to improve on."
U23 boss Neil Critchley after the win over Everton: "I don't want to get too carried away with him but, wow, what a performance,"
"He's 16 and he's calm and assured in his decision-making. He got a little bit tired near the end but understandably so - he played in the week as well.
"His authority and assurance on the pitch for a boy so young was very, very impressive."
