Ben Woodburn

He made his senior debut for Liverpool on 26 November, coming on as a 92nd-minute substitute for Georginio Wijnaldum in a 2–0 Premier League victory over Sunderland.

Upon doing so, Woodburn became Liverpool's third-youngest debutant of all time at the age of 17 years and 42 days, and the club's second youngest in the Premier League, behind Jack Robinson.

Three days later, he became Liverpool's youngest goalscorer at the age of 17 years and 45 days when he came off the bench to score in an EFL Cup quarter-final win over Leeds United, bettering Michael Owen's record by 98 days.

Benjamin Luke Woodburn (born 15 October 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Preston North End and the Wales national team.

Woodburn joined the football academy of Liverpool when he was seven years old.

Nearly a decade later, upon making his senior debut in 2016, he became the third-youngest player ever to play for the club and, in just his second appearance, broke Michael Owen's long-standing record to become Liverpool's youngest goalscorer.

He subsequently went on loan to Sheffield United, Oxford United, Blackpool and Hearts.

Having impressed first-team manager Jürgen Klopp during these training sessions, Woodburn was handed his non-competitive debut during the 2016–17 pre-season in a 1–0 win over Tranmere Rovers.

He came off the bench in Liverpool's next match to score one and assist another for Roberto Firmino in a 5–0 friendly win over Fleetwood Town.

Woodburn then, along with Kevin Stewart and fellow academy graduate Trent Alexander-Arnold, signed his first professional contract with Liverpool on 8 November 2016.

Woodburn represents Wales at international level and became the nation's second youngest goalscorer behind Gareth Bale when he scored on his senior debut in 2017.

Born in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Woodburn was raised in Tattenhall, Cheshire, and played both cricket and football from a young age.

He joined Liverpool's academy at under-7 level where he steadily progressed through the youth ranks, leading to former academy director Frank McParland identifying him as one of the brightest prospects at the club.

During his schooling, Liverpool agreed to a request from Woodburn's parents that he should stay at home rather than in Rainhill, which was closer to the academy in Kirkby.

In order to facilitate his development, the club arranged for a driver to transport him every day from training back to his home in Tattenhall.

When he was 15 years old, Woodburn left his high school, Bishop Heber High School and was fast-tracked from Liverpool's under-16s to the under-18s where his rapid development saw him included in Liverpool's "Futures Group", a programme which afforded the club's most talented young players a weekly opportunity to train with then first-team coach, Pep Lijnders.

Following his rapid development at Liverpool, both Sky Sports and The Guardian named Woodburn as one of the top young players to watch in 2017.

On 8 January 2017, he became the then-youngest player to represent the club in the FA Cup when he started in a 0–0 draw with Plymouth Argyle.

His first start in the league followed on 4 April in a 2–1 away triumph over Stoke City which saw him become the third-youngest player to start for Liverpool in the Premier League era behind Owen and Jordon Ibe.

The following week he was nominated for the 2017 European Golden Boy award, but was beaten by French forward Kylian Mbappé.

On 9 May, Woodburn won Liverpool's Academy Player of the Season award following a campaign which saw him score eight goals in Premier League 2 and break into the first team.

He was also later nominated for the Premier League 2 Player of the Season award alongside Alexander-Arnold, though the award was ultimately won by Swansea City's Oli McBurnie.

The following season, Liverpool's academy coach Steven Gerrard named Woodburn as captain of the under-19 side for the club's UEFA Youth League campaign, a competition which ran parallel to the season's UEFA Champions League.

He made just one senior appearance, as a substitute, during the first half of the season but signed a new long-term deal with Liverpool in October and was named BBC Wales Young Sportsman of the Year in December.

Woodburn continued to represent the youth and reserve sides at the start of the second half of the season.

On 21 February 2018, he scored once and assisted another as Liverpool beat Manchester United's U19 side 2–0 to qualify for the quarter finals of the UEFA Youth League.

There, the club was eliminated by Manchester City.

He made his second and only other senior appearance for the season on 13 May, coming on as a late substitute for Mohamed Salah in a 4–0 league win over Brighton.

On 1 July, he and club teammates Alexander-Arnold and Herbie Kane were named on the shortlist for the 2018 Golden Boy award.

On 31 July 2018, Woodburn signed on a season-long loan with Championship side Sheffield United.

He made his debut for the club four days later, coming off the bench for David McGoldrick in a 2–1 loss to Swansea.

His first start followed on 14 August in a League Cup tie against Hull City where, with the scores level after regulation time, the match progressed to a penalty shootout.

Woodburn converted his spot kick but Sheffield United were ultimately defeated after his former Liverpool teammate Kevin Stewart scored the winning penalty for Hull.

He struggled for game time during the first half of the season, however, compounded by an ankle injury sustained in December and by the midway point of the campaign had only made eight appearances for the club.

He was subsequently recalled from his loan by Liverpool where he spent the remainder of the season, making sporadic appearances for the club's U23 side.

Woodburn was also included in the side's squad for the knockout phases of the Champions League, which Liverpool went on to win after a 2–0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the final, although he was not included in the matchday squad.

On 30 July 2019, Woodburn signed with League One side Oxford United on a season-long loan.

He made his Oxford debut in a 1–1 draw at Sunderland on the opening day of the 2019–20 season, and assisted Tariqe Fosu for his team's goal.

On 24 August, he scored his first goal for the club, opening the scoring in a 3–1 defeat to Bristol Rovers.

His campaign was once again disrupted by injury, however, after he suffered a broken bone in his foot in October which ruled him out for a number of weeks.