Curtis Jones could be handed a Liverpool boost thanks to Steven Gerrard

It was a surprise to see Curtis Jones back in the Liverpool starting 11 on Tuesday night for Liverpool’s second leg Last 16 Champions League clash with Inter Milan.

Jones has found minutes tough to come by at times this season.

Although a popular academy graduate, Jones has made just 11 league appearances so far and struggled to stamp his authority on some of the matches in which he did feature.

This has led to wider questions among Liverpool fans about whether the youngster may need another step to make the grade at the club.

But while he didn’t excel in Tuesday night’s win, it was still a performance that had promise and the same shed some light on why Jurgen Klopp continues to believe in him.

Irrespective of this, it’s probably not unfair to say that Jones isn’t quite at the stage in which he could regularly displace key Liverpool midfielders.

He could potentially one day develop into that player, but the key to doing so will be playing regular minutes during this important stage of his career.

Right now, this just can’t be promised at Liverpool, even if their regular pursuit of multiple trophies does mean that they tend to play more matches than most.

For that reason, there’s a growing sense that a loan move may suit the midfielder this summer.

While the Reds have accumulated plenty of plaudits for their business in terms of incomings across recent years, there’s also been an underrated ability to find good clubs for their young prospects to flourish too.

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