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News
Ben Davies ‘mentally released’ after Liverpool loan exit
Ben Davies has talked about his relief about leaving Liverpool on a season-long loan spell to Sheffield United.
The centre-half joined the club in a permanent deal back in January for just £2m from Preston North End.
However, he failed to make a single appearance under Jurgen Klopp despite the injury crisis at centre-half.
Ozan Kabak and Nat Phillips were the preferred options for the German manager.
And, despite some rocky appearances from the duo, the Reds managed to qualify for the Champions League.
Speaking about departing for Sheffield United, Davies has claimed it felt like a ‘mental release’.
When talking about his move to the Blades, Davies told : “I was becoming aware that I was the fifth or sixth choice to play in the centre of the defence for Liverpool. When I joined Sheffield United, with the promise of playing games, it felt like I had finally been mentally released.”
However, there do not seem to be any hard feelings, with the central defender claiming the experience has made him a better player.
He said: “I feel that just being around top players has improved me. I feel I’ve grown up.”
Davies was never going to be a starter for Liverpool
Last season was a unique situation for the Reds. Suffering such a massive injury crisis in one position to the point you have to make two signings is unusual.
However, from both Kabak and Davies, it became obvious the latter was never going to play for Liverpool.
Making the jump from Championship defender to Premier League regular is far too big for most.
Both Kabak and Phillips can be described as having experience at a higher level.
The Turk was a regular for Schalke, while the youngster had trained and played with the Merseysiders.
When you consider how desperate the side were to return to the Champions League, picking them ahead of the ex-Preston man made sense.