Everton are reportedly keen on signing 19-year-old Liverpool winger Ben Doak. The former Celtic youth, who has been capped six times by Scotland at senior international level, spent the 2024-25 season out on loan at Middlesbrough. Doak impressed at the Riverside, producing seven assists and three goals in 24 Championship appearances.
Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town both tried to sign him in January, but Liverpool preferred that he completed his loan. FA Cup winners Palace are understood to still hold an interest in Doak, but they now face fresh competition from the Toffees, according to Sky Sports. However, it is also claimed that Liverpool had been planning to assess Doak’s readiness for first-team football at Anfield during their upcoming pre-season campaign.
Doak has already made 10 senior appearances for the Reds, all coming under former manager Jurgen Klopp. He has featured in three Premier League games and three Europa League matches, with his other four Liverpool appearances all coming in the domestic cups. Klopp once described Doak as a “special boy,” adding, “He’s really confident and has something nobody else delivers really, this kind of dribbling, this kind of straight-forward bravery, all these kind of things.”
Doak was named in Scotland’s provisional 28-man squad for Euro 2024 last summer, a highly anticipated tournament for national teams across Europe. Unfortunately, he had a serious injury that kept him from playing, therefore he had to leave the squad. Steve Clarke, the manager of Scotland, talked about his choice to call up the young, talented player, saying: “Ben has a lot of talent; he catches your eye with his dynamic playing style.”Pace is something we haven’t got in abundance in the current squad, and his speed offers us a unique option on the wing. He’s something a little bit different from our existing players. Although I’ve never had the chance to work closely with Ben in a team setting, it felt like the right opportunity to include him, especially with the squad size increasing from 23 to 26 players. This allows us to evaluate Ben’s contribution and see how he performs at this level.”
