From the moment that he broke into the team against Manchester United, Trent Alexander-Arnold barely looked back and cemented his place in the side as the Liverpool right-back. Such was the skill of the Scouser that it was tricky for the Reds to find players to play a supporting role for him down the righthand side of Liverpool’s defence.
In the summer of 2022, the Reds made a move to sign Calvin Ramsey from Aberdeen in a move that was worth an initial fee of £4.2 million for the Scottish side. Was Trent’s successor in place, or was it just another youth prospect added to the ranks?
Unfortunately for the Scot, the answer is probably more like the latter than the former. That, though, is largely down to the fact that he spent most of his first season at Anfield on the treatment table, meaning that he didn’t really a get a chance to prove his worth to Jürgen Klopp and his backroom team.
In fact, such was the extent to which he never got a fair crack at the whip for the Reds that a decision was taken to send to Preston North End on loan for the 2023-2024 campaign, with the hope being that he’d be able to get some minutes and show who he really is.
Who Is Calvin Ramsey?
Born on the 31st of July 2003, Calvin William Ramsey initially played as a midfielder when he was first getting into football. In fact, he continued in the middle of the park from the age of nine, when he joined Aberdeen, through to Under-15s level. It was at that point that he was moved into a position on the right of defence for a youth tournament and impressed in the position, remaining there ever since. The likelihood is that that is why Liverpool wanted him, considering the fact that Trent Alexander-Arnold also started in midfield before finding his place in the team as a right-back.
The Scottish international made his Aberdeen debut as a substitute against Dundee United in the March of 2021, when Paul Sheeran was the caretaker manager for the club. He went on to make give more appearances for the side in what was just his first season in the senior team. When Aberdeen played a UEFA Conference League qualifier in July of that year against Swedish side BK Häcken, Ramsey made his European debut. Not only did the Scottish side win the match 5-1, but Ramsey got an assist. His impressive play was part of the reasoning behind him being named the SFWA Young Player of the Year for the 2021-2022 campaign.
He made 33 appearances for Aberdeen in his second season as a senior pro, including 24 in the Scottish Premiership and six in the Europa Conference League. He got a goal in the Championship, helping to secure his position as one of the division’s most exciting players, which doubtless caught the attention of Liverpool’s scouts who were looking for someone to be able to come in as a long-term challenger for Trent in the right-back spot. Having used the likes of James Milner and Joe Gomez as backup for Alexander-Arnold, it was likely the Reds wanted a more specialist player.
Signing For Liverpool
In June of 2022, news broke that Liverpool had paid Aberdeen an initial fee of £4.2 million to sign Ramsey from the Scottish club on a five-year deal. In addition to that initial fee for the then 18-year-old, the Reds also agreed a 17.5% sell-on clause and £2.5 million in add-ons that would be paid if the player met certain criteria. In the wake of his signing, he said,
“I’m just buzzing and it’s a dream come true really to be here. It was a dream come true to play for Aberdeen, and now to be at one of the biggest, if not the biggest club in the world, it’s a massive achievement and I’m looking forward to trying to show the fans what I’ve got.”
Delighted to sign for this massive club, it’s an honour to be here and can’t wait to get started! @LFC ❤️ pic.twitter.com/aq9pHkqVHk
— Calvin Ramsay (@CalvinRamsay) June 19, 2022
It was, he said, the development of players like Trent and Harvey Elliott that encouraged him to sign for Jürgen Klopp’s team. “There’s obviously a pathway here,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons I chose it as well. It’s not just a massive club, they give young players chances in the first team. So if I can come in in pre-season, put my mark down, then there’s no reason why I can’t push to get in the first-team squad.”
For his part, the manager referred to a player with ‘bags of potential’ who was ‘athletic, smart, confident’ and who had ‘good technical ability’.
Injury Hit Debut Campaign
Unfortunately for Ramsey, his debut season for Liverpool was one that was constantly hit by injuries. In spite of the high hopes that many inside Anfield had for the youngster, he was rarely fit enough to actually make it onto the pitch. He did make his Reds debut in the Champions League, coming on in the 87th minute of a 2-0 win over Napoli on the first of November 2022.
Eight days later and he made his first start for the club in an EFL Cup game against Derby County, which the Reds won. Sadly, that was the end of his appearances for Liverpool and in February he was ruled out for the rest of the campaign after having surgery.
Next round!✅ pic.twitter.com/0nLvQ13V5X
— Calvin Ramsay (@CalvinRamsay) November 10, 2022
His performances for Liverpool, though fleeting, were enough to impress some people and that included the Scotland national side. He was called up to the senior squad in November of 2022, making his debut on the international stage in a 2-1 loss to Turkey. There is still plenty of hope from those in the know at Anfield that he’ll be able to make the grade, but the key thing for him to be able to do that is to get some minutes into his legs.
As a result, an agreement was reached between Liverpool and Preston North End for the Scottish player to spend the 2023-2024 campaign there.
