Liverpool Rule Out Ben Doak Sale as Player Set for Middlesbrough Stay

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The young winger had been linked with Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town but the deadline to recall him from his loan has now passed.

Liverpool's stance has always been that 19-year-old Scottish winger Ben Doak is one of the club's top young talents and has a future on Merseyside, but that didn't stop Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town from trying to tempt the Reds into a January sale.

Any chance of such a sale now appears 100% impossible, with the player currently on loan at Middlesborough and manager Michael Carrick revealing that the deadline for a potential return to Liverpool for the on loan player this month—something that would have had to have happened before a sale—has now passed.

"The deadline has passed for Ben," said following Middlesborough's 2-0 victory over West Brom on Tuesday evening. "I said all along I was calm, so obviously we're really happy he's here but genuinely it hasn't been a big worry for us."

Middlesborough currently sit fifth in the Championship, with sides three through six qualifying for the promotion playoff. The Championship's top four appear to have some separation ahead of them, leaving The Boro to fight it out with four other sides at present for the final two playoff places.

Doak, who is most comfortable on the right but can deploy to either flank, has been one of the standout performers for his loan club and amongst young players in the Championship this season, three goals and six assists in 23 appearances so far this season.

"He showed again tonight how dangerous he is and scored a terrific goal," Carrick added. "It's something that he can do a little bit more, come inside onto his left foot, because it's something he's good at as well so I'm delighted with it."