‘A huge player’: Hamann praises £29m Liverpool ace, reveals Gerard sees him as a ‘superstar’ | OneFootball

Former Liverpool star Dietmar Hamann has heaped praise on midfielder Curtis Jones amid his impressive progress at the club over the past few years.

The 23-year-old has made 148 appearances in his young career. He has grown into a more consistent performer this campaign under new manager Arne Slot.

Jones started the season on the bench for the Reds, but he has recently become an undisputed starter in the Premier League and Champions League games.

In a recent interview, Hamann said that Steven Gerrard predicted that Jones will be a ‘superstar’.

The 51-year-old added that the club graduate could be a huge player for not only Liverpool, but also for England.

He said: “Obviously, Steven Gerrard coached him in the academy. He’s been a huge admirer of him, and he said to me years ago to watch this kid because he’ll be a superstar.

“Sometimes you’ve got to give people time, and more often than not, they don’t get time at the giant clubs.

“You have to take your hat off to how Liverpool have managed him. There would have been numerous occasions where he could have gone on loan for 12 months, but they decided it was better for him to stay and continue his education at Liverpool.

“I think he could be a huge player, not only for Liverpool, but also for England. He set up a goal against Leverkusen where he played a through-ball.

“I don’t think there’s too many players in world football who would see the pass and would play the pass. It was absolutely sensational.”

Jones living up to his potential under Slot

The midfielder has been part of the first-team for six years and he is now maturing into a top-class midfielder.

In the current season, Jones has been exceptional with a passing accuracy of 95 percent. He has won 55 percent of his duels with an average of 2.5 recoveries and 1.2 tackles.

Jones’ ball control is a highlight of his gameplay. The Englishman has lost possession on just 3.9 occasions per league game.

He has started regularly in recent weeks due to this attribute and he needs to keep on doing the same to become a permanent member in the starting line-up for the long-term.

With fierce competition from Dominik Szoboszlai in particular, the £29 million-rated star can’t be complacent. He could lost his starting spot with a slight dip in form.

Jones is likely to start ahead of the Hungarian in Sunday’s much-awaited league game against Manchester City at Anfield.

Stats from Sofascore.com