Where are they now? Liverpool’s 16 wonderkids from Football Manager 2014

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Raheem Sterling playing for Liverpool
  • Ben Stewart
  • 12th September 2023

It’s been almost 10 years since Football Manager 2014 was released and we couldn’t help but check up on the 16 wonderkids from Liverpool to see where they are these days.

The Reds were riding the crest of a wave during the game’s release back in October 2013. Brendan Rodgers was in the hot seat and an inspired campaign from Luis Suarez took them to within touching distance of the Premier League title.

We’ve gone ahead and scrolled back through the archives to uncover the 16 Liverpool wonderkids from Football Manager 2014 and checked out where they are today.

Tiago Ilori

The Reds splashed around £7million on the Portuguese defender back in 2013 after he’d impressed with Sporting. His career at Anfield was fairly short-lived though as he made a mere three first team appearances.

Following a spell with Reading in the Championship, he returned to Sporting in 2019 and has had a series of loan spells since. Now 30 years old, Ilori is on the hunt for his next club upon his release from Sporting this summer.

Andre Wisdom

The former Liverpool youngster has been out of the game since his release by Derby County in 2021. Wisdom spent four years with Derby, but admitted that he’s not been the same since suffering a stabbing after leaving a house party in 2020.

“It was frustrating as when I’ve come out of hospital after like three days, I had a couple of operations, it was like my body just wasn’t the same,” he told the Beautiful Game Podcast.

“I tried to get back into football and it wasn’t the same, I wasn’t getting the same output in terms of power or speed.”

Lloyd Jones

The defender never made a senior appearance for Liverpool, despite impressing at youth level. The 27-year-old is perhaps most known for his stint with Cambridge United, who he left this summer.

Now 27, Jones plays for Charlton Athletic in League One who will be looking to improve upon their 10th-placed finish last season.

Jon Flanagan

Local lad Flanagan made over 50 appearances for the Reds and played a prominent role in the 2013-14 title-chasing campaign under Rodgers.

Once his first team minutes had started to dwindle, he left the club in 2018 to join fellow Liverpudlian Steven Gerrard at Rangers, but he struggled to nail down a regular spot at Ibrox. In October 2022, the full-back decided to hang up his boots due to a recurring knee injury.

Pedro Chirivella

While the Spanish midfielder never quite made it at Anfield, he has forged a successful career for himself elsewhere. The 26-year-old now captains Ligue 1 outfit Nantes where he has racked up over 100 appearances.

Jordan Rossiter

Rossiter made his debut for Liverpool as a 17-year-old in the League Cup. The midfielder found first team opportunities fairly hard to come by so he agreed to join Rangers on a free transfer in 2016.

He struggled to establish himself in Scotland either and swiftly made the move back to England to play in the EFL. These days you can catch him playing for League One outfit Bristol Rovers.

Harry Wilson

The Welsh winger spent the majority of his time at Liverpool out on loan and the Reds ultimately made a healthy profit on the 26-year-old. After impressive loan spells with Hull, Derby and Cardiff, Fulham purchased the winger for a reported £12million fee.

Wilson had an eye-catching campaign with Fulham in the Championship as he scored 10 goals and produced 19 assists as Marco Silva’s side were promoted. The 26-year-old remains an integral figure in that side today.

Raheem Sterling

Sterling became the most expensive English player of all time when Man City splashed around £50million on him back in 2015. Liverpool fans were hurt to see him leave, but the winger experienced unparalleled success at the Etihad.

After scoring 131 goals and winning 11 trophies, Sterling called it quits on his Man City career last summer to join Chelsea. It’s fair to say that he’s not quite had the same success since leaving.

Sergi Canos

Canos was handed his first and only Liverpool appearance on the final day of the 2015–16 season against West Brom. The Spanish winger spent the following season on loan with Brentford, who he eventually joined on a permanent basis in 2017.

Canos enjoyed some great years with Brenftord and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League in 2020–21. After six eventful years with Brentford, the winger joined Valencia this summer.

Jordon Ibe

The former England U21 international was highly rated as a youngster and the Reds managed to turn a healthy profit on the winger when Bournemouth snapped him up for £15million in 2016.

Unfortunately, injuries and off-the-pitch issues have hampered his career and he currently finds himself as a free agent. The 27-year-old joined Adanaspor in January 2022, but never made a first team appearance. He was most recently on trial with National League side Chesterfield.

Suso

While the Spanish playmaker never quite made it at Anfield, he has enjoyed a successful career away from the Premier League. The winger played over 150 matches for AC Milan before making the move to Sevilla in 2020.

Suso is now a two-time Europa League winner and still plays for Sevilla today. Along with his success at club level, he had also been capped by Spain five times which is decent going.

Luis Alberto

After joining Liverpool in a deal worth a reported £6.8million, Alberto never really got much of a chance at Anfield. The Spanish playmaker only played 12 games for the first team before he was shipped out on loan and eventually sold.

“He’s still a very young player and he does have quality,” Rodgers told reporters in 2014. “It shows you the level of where we are at. It was a signing for the long term – that was the idea.”

The long-term vision didn’t quite materialise for Alberto and Liverpool, but he has excelled since leaving. He has played for Lazio since 2016 and has racked up over 260 appearances for the Italian side since. A great bit of business by Lazio in the end.

Joao Teixeira

The Portuguese midfielder was dubbed ‘the new Deco’ upon signing for Liverpool in 2012. Things never quite clicked for him in England though as he made just eight appearances for the Reds before being let go.

He’s become quite the journeyman since leaving Liverpool as he is now on his third club in the last 15 months. Now 30 years old, the attacking midfielder plays in the Chinese Super League for Shanghai Shenhua.

Sheyi Ojo

Ojo was subjected to the loan conveyor belt while at Liverpool as he spent time on loan with seven different clubs. Upon his contract with Liverpool expiring in 2022, he signed for Cardiff on a free transfer.

Fast forward one year and he’s out on loan again and playing for Belgian side K.V. Kortrijk. To already be on your ninth club by the time you are just 26 is some going.

Jerome Sinclair

The former Liverpool forward was tipped for the very top after becoming the club’s youngest-ever player after making his debut at the age of 16 years and six days back in September 2012.

Following a stint with Watford and several loan spells, Sinclair has been out of the professional game since 2021. These days he seems to have to stepped away from football in order to focus on other business interests.

Samed Yesil

Liverpool splashed around £1million on Yesil as an 18-year-old, but his first team opportunities were few and far between. At 29 years old, the forward now plays in the fifth tier of German football for Ratingen 04/19.

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