5 players on loan who are performing well this season
The European scene is the biggest stage of club football, and as such, every young boy from all parts of the globe with aspirations of becoming a professional footballer dreams of lacing up his boots and playing for the biggest clubs in the world. It is in Europe where dreams come to life.
However, only a few of these young kids go on to achieve their dreams of becoming professional footballers, while the rest of us (yours faithfully included) go on to spend the rest of their lives analyzing and writing about the game they love so much, while others still devote their time to supporting their favorite teams with a feverish passion either from the comfort of the cushions in their homes or from the rafters in the stands.
Even among those who make it as professionals, only a select few go on to achieve elite status and cement their legacy in the annals of football, as they show a lack of wherewithal needed to survive the harsh realities of being a top level footballer.
Talent at the biggest clubs is usually at a premium level, and as such, not too many players are able to cut it while at such clubs, with most clearing the way for more talented players by either being sold outrightly or being shipped out on loan.
More often than not, the players who are sent out are usually young players of tremendous value who are struggling to nail down a regular spot due to the presence of more established players in the pecking order, and as such the best decision is usually to loan out such players to get the requisite playing time to adapt to the rigors of playing top level football.
While on loan, some of these players go on to achieve superstardom, highlighting the folly of the decision to let them go, and it is on this matter that the subject of this piece focuses.
In this slideshow, we present five players currently on loan who have thrived this season at the club where they were shipped to.
Honorable mentions – Martin Odegaard (AS Vitesse – on loan from Real Madrid), Mason Mount (Derby County – on loan from Chelsea ), Harry Wilson (Derby County – On Loan From Liverpool), Matteo Kovacic (Chelsea – on loan from Real Madrid), Ola Aina (Torino – on loan from Chelsea)
#5 Danny Ings (Southampton – on loan from Liverpool)
The 26-year-old striker was named Championship Player of the season in 2014 after his impressive performances in England’s second tier helped bring the Clarets to second place and promotion to the Premier League.
Following Burnley’s relegation and the expiration of Ings’ contract at the end of the 2014/2015 EPL season, he was transferred to Liverpool to help the bolster the team’s attack under Brendan Rodgers.
Things however deteriorated for The Reds under Rodgers, leading to his sack and replacement by Jurgen Klopp, but Ings was dealt a major blow to his Liverpool career, as he suffered a tear to his ACL in his left knee, which ruled him out for the rest of the season (although he made a substitute appearance in the last game of the campaign).
Ings has always been an injury plagued player, and once again in October 2016 he suffered another knee injury, this time on his right knee in a League Cup match against Tottenham, which ruled him out of the season (He made just two League Cup appearances throughout the 2016/2017 season).
He returned in September 2017 (his first appearance in 11 months), and had to wait until April 2018 to get his first goal for Liverpool in almost three years (and first under Jurgen Klopp).
The performances of Liverpool’s vaunted attacking trio, coupled with the quality options of Sturridge and Shaqiri off the bench, meant that Ings getting playing time this season was always going to be a tall order.
It therefore came as no surprise when he was loaned out to Southampton at the start of the season, with The Saints obligated to buy him at the end of the campaign.
He has started life at the St Mary’s rather impressively, scoring on his first start for the club in the 2-1 defeat to Everton, while also netting the opener in a 2-0 over Crystal Palace to help Southhampton register their first win of the Premier League campaign.
He has so far scored 4 goals in 10 appearances for Southampton, although unlike other clubs on the list, Liverpool’s performances in his absence means that they don’t miss him too much, and his loan move was probably in his best interest.