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Steven Gerrard already in love with Tottenham gem Williams-Barnett as Liverpool comparison made
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- Steven Gerrard already in love with Tottenham gem Williams-Barnett as Liverpool comparison made
Steven Gerrard has already seen all he needs to know Tottenham Hotspur have a real star in Luca Williams-Barnett.
The 18-year-old was handed his Premier League debut as a second-half substitute against Crystal Palace at the weekend.
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Williams-Barnett, whose senior debut arrived in the Carabao Cup last season, came on in the 88th minute of the 2-0 win against Palace.
While he has only been seen twice in a Spurs kit at senior level so far, plenty has already been said about the forward thanks to his exploits at age-grade level.
He has showed he can score regularly for both England and Spurs when called upon, representing the former up to Under-19s level so far.
And Gerrard is excited for what the future holds for the teenager, who he compared to a Liverpool talent.
What did Luca Williams-Barnett do to win over Steven Gerrard?
Williams-Barnett was not given much time at all to impress against Palace, but even in his limited minutes he still caught the eye.
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There was one brilliant run in particular in the second half in which he teed up Mohammed Kudus for a sitter, only for the Ghanian to fluff his lines.
That moment got supporters out of their seats and chanting the youngster's name.
Speaking on Monday's edition of The Overlap Daily , Gerrard followed supporters in singing Williams-Barnett's praises.
"I loved one moment," he said. "Williams-Barnett, whose name I've heard mentioned to me a few times through the England youth ranks, he came on for a cameo.
"If I'm a Tottenham fan I'm buzzing with the win and clean sheet, but this young kid is going to be a player. I saw enough in his 10 minutes.
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"It was like the Declan Rice cross [for Kai Havertz's goal versus Liverpool]. I just thought they have their own Rio Ngumoha."
In his five minutes or so on the field, Williams-Barnett completed three of his five attempted passes (60 per cent).
The youngster also won one of his two attempted duels and registered one successful dribble, as per Sofascore .
Luca Williams-Barnett has more than Tottenham promotion on cards after latest England U19s exploits Are Rio Ngumoha comparisons justified?
This is a hard one to answer based on one Premier League appearance from Williams-Barnett.
But from what we have seen in the youth setup, his style of play does seem similar to Ngumoha.
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The Liverpool youngster averages 0.9 dribbles per game, which is among the highest in the Reds' squad.
He is also fouled 0.7 times per game, which is again something Williams-Barnett is accustomed to.
Roberto De Zerbi will know the importance of keeping Spurs' rising star grounded, but there is no reason why he cannot now be used regularly.
