Liverpool’s £30m Dilemma: Ben Doak’s Future in The Balance | OneFootball

Could Ben Doak Leave Liverpool?

With reports linking him to Crystal Palace and Ipswich and the latest rumours citing bids upwards of £20m, it seems Doak could leave Anfield for new pastures as early as this month.

Liverpool want to hold out for £30m for Doak, which would be a massive profit after bringing him in from Celtic as a 16-year-old.

But Doak is highly rated and excelling in the Championship at the moment.

Does it make sense for Liverpool to sell him? Or should they try to keep hold of the Scotsman to integrate him into Arne Slot’s first team?

The Positives – Ben Doak

Doak is a phenomenal and explosive footballer on the ball. His great feet and speed make him one of the fastest players in the Championship.

This season, he averages 2.02 successful take-ons in England’s second tier and 7.26 progressive carries per 90 – highlighting his prowess on the ball. In both stats, he would be a leader among Liverpool’s current wingers – the latter by three progressive carries per 90 compared to Liverpool’s leader in the metric, Mohamed Salah (4.25).

In this sense, Doak can definitely offer something different to Liverpool. His explosiveness could be useful in Slot’s attacking system.

On top of that, Doak has flourished as a creative outlet for Middlesbrough, too.

He’s averaged 2.44 key passes per 90 minutes, which would make him the stat leader among Liverpool’s wingers again—the Reds’ best performer in that metric is Salah, on 2.04 per 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, defensively, Doak also puts in a very good shift to provide cover and attack the ball during turnovers.

He averages 3.45 recoveries per 90, putting him as Liverpool’s second-best performer in the metric, behind Cody Gakpo. Only Luis Diaz averages more among the club’s wingers, but only marginally more, at 3.71 recoveries per 90.

Doak’s explosiveness, creativity and defensive output make him an ideal fit for Slot’s system.

But the picture is not that perfect. There are reasons for Liverpool to sell Doak as well.

Photo: IMAGO

Negative Sides of Doak

Despite playing for the second-highest-scoring team in the Championship at the moment, Doak’s output pales in comparison to Slot’s current options in the Premier League.

His 0.48 goals and assists per 90 minutes are miles below Cody Gakpo’s (0.73), Luis Diaz’s (0.81), and Mohamed Salah’s (1.67).

Doak has age on his side but hasn’t quite proven himself capable of churning out the numbers you need to play in a top Premier League side.

While there are aspects of Doak that are appealing creatively, the finishing and goal-scoring aspects raise the biggest questions.

Doak has averaged 0.12 goals per 90 minutes in the Championship—this is a massive 0.43 behind the Liverpool winger with the lowest output this season (Cody Gakpo—0.55).

The youngster has proven to be a bad finisher so far, having underperformed his xG by 0.13 per 90 minutes. He is taking shots in the right areas and in and around the penalty box, but he has been unable to find that cutting edge in front of the goal.

That output will be a concern for Liverpool even so early on in his career. So many players can never really find their clinical feet, and there is no guarantee Doak ever will. He scored 11 goals in 29 matches at the academy level for Liverpool and has yet to find the back of the net in 10 senior appearances.

That means he still needs time to develop, and it might be a while before he is at a level where he could be a useful option in Slot’s first-team squad.

Photo: IMAGO

Should Liverpool Sell Doak?

Doak is still very raw, but he has elements that can make him a top-class player. Based on his numbers at the moment, it is difficult to gauge his ceiling.

In an ideal world, Liverpool should keep him at the club and continue to watch over his development.

However, with the potential of a £30m sale looming this month, Liverpool might be tempted by that prospect.

There are still many question marks over Doak’s ability, and that kind of money is still a huge offer for a player with just 33 first-team appearances under his belt.

Given the market at the moment and the fact that Liverpool has a potential superstar in Rio Ngumoha coming through the ranks who aren’t far off Doak – it might just be better for Richard Hughes and Michael Edwards to cash in.