Jurgen Klopp could have his own Philipp Lahm in the Liverpool ranks

Liverpool are currently a club brimming with talent from the first teams down to the academy.

On Saturday, the Reds seniors, Under-23s and Under-18s scored a combined 14 goals between them.

Jurgen Klopp’s charges edged to within three points of the Premier League summit with a 2-0 win at Brighton.

Meanwhile, the Under-18s played out a thrilling 5-5 draw with Manchester United.

However, the biggest result of the day for a Liverpool FC side came at Under-23 level.

The young Reds thrashed a depleted Tottenham outfit 7-1 in the Premier League 2 clash at the AXA Training Centre.

Liverpool dominated from the off and were three goals up by the half-hour mark.

Conor Bradley, Max Woltman and James Norris scored in the 16th, 25th and 28th minutes respectively.

Leighton Clarkson then grabbed a quickfire brace, both goals coming from the penalty spot.

The 20-year-old got his first on 34 minutes and his second deep in first-half injury time.

Both were expertly dispatched penalties, giving Josh Oluwayemi little chance in the Spurs goal.

Liverpool were 5-0 up at half time, though J’Neil Bennett grabbed one back for Tottenham in the 54th minute.

It proved little more than a consolation, with the Reds netting twice more, through Jack Bearne and Fidel Rourke.

“Huge difference”

Clarkson, who got his first goals of the season, is one of the most highly rated youngsters at Liverpool.

He spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Blackburn, but sadly, they barely gave him any game time.

Liverpool U23s coach Barry Lewtas is nonetheless pleased to have the midfielder back.

“Leighton has made a huge difference for us because he adds a different dimension to our play since he has come back,” Lewtas told Liverpoolfc.com.

“He is able to control the pace of the game through his range of passing.”

Clarkson has made three senior appearances for Liverpool including against FC Midtjylland in the Champions League in 2020-21.

Klopp himself has reportedly compared the youngster to Philipp Lahm (Lancashire Live) and sung his praises before that game.

“Leighton is one of the biggest talents in our club,” he said.

“He’s been there for ages, he’s a midfielder, a number six type, can play eight as well.

“He’s a very talented, good football-playing boy.

“In Germany there’s a famous player who played similar to him.

“You might have to go back a little bit longer, I don’t want to put pressure on the boy.

“But he reminds me a lot of him. He’s just a good footballer, a smart footballer, fast, physically strong.

“If you see his legs they are not like 19-year-old boy legs, they are already grown.

“I’m really happy to give him that opportunity because he deserves it.”