'I don't know': Manager suggests wonderkid who is 'destined for greatness' should not sign for Liverpool
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Liverpool have made it a mission of sorts in recent years to sign the biggest and brightest from English football, and Trey Ogunsuyi could be next on the agenda.
The Sunderland teenager has been in sensational form at youth level this season, with the 18-year-old already at 15 goals in all competitions for the Black Cats’ U-18s and U-21s, with Roker Report noting that Ogunsuyi is a talent who is ‘destined for greatness’.
With Liverpool rumoured to be interested in signing Ogunsuyi, the Sunderland wonderkid could join the likes of Trey Nyoni and Den Doak in making a move to Anfield and being nurtured to one day become a first-team player under Arne Slot.
Yet Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris has now given his take on Ogunsuyi joining Liverpool.
Ogunsuyi warned against joining Liverpool amid recent interest
Speaking to the press after Sunderland’s 2-1 win against Norwich City, the French manager hinted that Ogunsuyi is already in the right environment to grow as a player, with the teenage attacker on the verge of making his first-team debut with the Black Cats.
Indeed, Liverpool signing Ogunsuyi could mean years of loan spells for the striker, and Le Bris feels like the youngster’s time and development would be better off spent at Sunderland, where the forward could become a regular in 2025.
Le Bris said when asked about Ogunsuyi’s future: “He’s very young and probably Riggy [Chris Rigg], Tommy [Watson] and Jobe [Bellingham] are the best examples to follow in our club. When you move to another club with a very strong squad you have to find the right environment to develop yourself.
“I don’t know. Social media and so on can talk a lot but at the end if we create the right environment and the player, his family and agents are rational, we are in a good place to create the right pathway for him.”
Ogunsuyi’s manager might have a point at staying at Sunderland
Although Doak is thriving out on loan at Middlesbrough having signed for Liverpool two years ago, the Scottish winger had already made his first-team debut for Celtic before making the move south to Merseyside.
And in Ogunsuyi’s case as an 18-year-old who is yet to play a senior minute for Sunderland, remaining with the Championship side might be a smart idea for the next 18 months, with the attacker primed to break into the first-team squad next year.
Indeed, Ogunsuyi has the talent and the potential to become a real star in the years to come, yet given where the forward currently is in his development, the striker would be better off remaining at Sunderland and getting regular minutes in the Championship than leaving for Liverpool.
