West Brom are reportedly interested in signing Liverpool youngster Leighton Clarkson on loan this month and the midfielder could be a big upgrade on Jake Livermore in Carlos Corberan’s side.
According to Football Insider, a number of Championship sides including the Baggies, Reading and QPR are all keen on taking the 21-year-old on loan until the end of the season after his impressive displays north of the border with Aberdeen.
The Dons are keen on keeping the England U20 international at Pittodrie until the end of the season but Liverpool could potentially terminate his loan in Scotland before sending him to any of the interested Championship sides.
The Liverpool academy graduate has already made three appearances for the senior side and spent the second half of last season on loan with Blackburn Rovers but failed to make much impression.
However, his displays at Aberdeen so far this campaign have been very impressive, as he boasts four goals and one assist in 17 Scottish Premiership appearances, with WhoScored awarding him a strong 6.84 average rating for his performances.
He is clearly highly thought of at Anfield too, with Jurgen Klopp singing his praises in 2021 after a friendly win over Osasuna.
He said: “Leighton is one of the biggest talents in our club, he’s been there for ages. He’s a midfielder, a number six type, can play eight as well.”
Should he arrive at the Hawthorns this month, it seems clear that he would be a significant upgrade on ageing captain Jake Livermore, who has struggled immensely on his appearances in the second tier so far this campaign.
The 33-year-old has lost his place under Corberan and it is no surprise that results have dramatically improved since, with it also noticeable that the Baggies shipped three goals against non-league Chesterfield when Livermore did return to the side last weekend.
WhoScored have awarded him a woeful 6.33 rating for his performances in the Championship this season, while he has also averaged far fewer tackles (1.7 vs 0.8), key passes (1.1 vs 0.3) and shots per game (one vs 0.4) when compared to Clarkson, which suggests that the Liverpool man can be an upgrade from both a defensive and attacking perspective.
Although Corberan has preferred a midfield duo of Okay Yokuslu and Jayson Molumby for much of his time in charge, this has been perhaps due to a lack of other reliable options, and Clarkson could certainly give the Spanish manager even more to think about as he looks to continue the Baggies’ surge up the table.
