One Liverpool player could potentially tick off a seminal moment in his fledgling career over the next few hours.
Scotland’s Euro 2024 warm-up friendly against Gibraltar mightn’t readily grab the attention of many neutrals, but it’s a fixture which might possibly see Ben Doak being given his senior international debut – all the more so after a hint from the one man with the power to grant him that achievement.
Speaking ahead of the match, Steve Clarke hinted at a potential appearance for the 18-year-old, although the manager warned against putting too much pressure on the teenager’s shoulders after a season ravaged by injury.
As per The Mirror, the ex-Liverpool coach said: “Listen, Ben is in the squad to gain experience, to work with us. He has been out [injured] for four and a half months so let’s not put too much on Ben.
“He will be available [v Gibraltar], maybe some minutes off the bench, but let’s keep Ben in the right place. Let’s not overhype or overpush him. Let’s do it properly.”
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Doak caught the eye with some impressive cameos for Liverpool in the Europa League in the first half of the season, but surgery on a knee injury has sidelined him since mid-December, so Clarke is right to advise against fast-tracking him into the Scotland side this close to a major tournament.
It’s a testament to the teenager’s raw talent that he was called up to the provisional Euro 2024 squad despite that lengthy layoff and having never been capped at senior level, but it isn’t for nothing that Scottish under-21 boss Scot Gemmill labelled him ‘exceptional‘ last year.
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With Gibraltar being one of Europe’s lowest-ranked nations, it appears the likeliest fixture for the Reds prodigy to make his international debut. Should he duly feature this evening and make a good impression, it might lead to a follow-up appearance against Finland later this week.
The enforced withdrawal of Lyndon Dykes through injury theoretically improves the chances of Doak getting game-time at the Euros, unless Clarke were to draft in a more experienced forward to replace the stricken QPR man.
The 60-year-old will likely favour incremental progression over an instant tossing into the deep end as far as the Liverpool teenager is concerned, but it’s still an exciting prospect to see this gifted young footballer potentially about to be unleashed on the international stage.