LIVERPOOL’s signing of Freddie Woodman has been a DECADE in the making.
The Reds confirmed the arrival of the goalkeeper on a free transfer following his exit from Preston North End.
Woodman, 28, will bolster Arne Slot’s options between the sticks following the exit of Caoimhín Kelleher to Brentford.
He will now have to compete with the likes of Alisson Becker and Giorgi Mamardashvili for gametime.
Liverpool are well aware of the talents of Woodman despite the stopper spending most of his career in the EFL.
He came through the ranks at Newcastle United and starred for the likes of Swansea City and Kilmarnock before moving to Deepdale.
The Reds were linked with a move for Woodman before he had even made a first-team appearance for the Magpies.
They were reportedly competing with Crystal Palace and Southampton for his signature at the time.
The Eagles had an advantage in the race as they had hired Woodman’s dad, Andy, as a coach.
Woodman had also spent over ten years at the South London club in his youth before moving up north in 2013.
Andy – who now manages Bromley – was close friends with Sir Gareth Southgate and was even the best man at his wedding.
Woodman has also racked up plenty of international experience during his career.
He was a regular in the England youth teams, having appeared for every age group from the U16s to the U21s.
However, he stayed put at St James’ Park until he left permanently in 2022 for Preston.
He spent three seasons as the club’s first-choice stopper and was named Player of the Year in his debut season.
Preston’s former manager Ryan Lowe, even claimed that the stopper was worth £20MILLION amid interest from Rangers at the time.
This summer, Liverpool were not the only club in the running for Woodman.
Manchester United were also reportedly interested but ultimately opted to offer veteran Tom Heaton a new deal.
Woodman may be viewed as the third-choice goalkeeper at Anfield but he still has an important role.
The Englishman qualifies as a homegrown player which is important for the club’s participation in the Champions League.
Uefa allows clubs to register 17 non-homegrown players in their squads and Slot is at his limit.
This is due to the summer arrivals of Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong.
Last season, Woodman impressed at Deepdale as he played a crucial role in the club’s survival in the Championship.
He kept 12 clean sheets in 37 appearances as the club finished just one point above the bottom three.
Read the full article here
