Liverpool transfer for 'elite talent' confirmed as director of football speaks out

Liverpool defender Rhys Williams has departed on loan to Port Vale.

The centre-back joins the League One side for the remainder of the 2023-24 campaign, having spent the first half of the season at Aberdeen. Williams struggled north of the border where he made just one outing before being recalled to Anfield.

The fact that Williams scarcely featured for Aberdeen took Reds manager Jurgen Klopp by surprise. He expected the former England youth international - who memorably helped Liverpool qualify for the Champions League in the 2020-21 season when Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez all suffered long-term injuries - to play regularly.

Williams will be hoping to get his career back on track at the Vale, who are 15th in the third tier. The club's director of football David Flitcroft said: “Rhys comes into the club as a player with great pedigree and experience. Ourselves, Liverpool and Rhys alike believe that Port Vale is the right home for him and where his career at this point for him to come in and to be given a platform to recognise his potential.

“As a player, at 6ft 5in, Rhys is a committed and combative defender who enjoys to get on the ball and start defensive progressions. Rhys has a determined drive to become the very best that he can be, it makes him the perfect fit, both on and off the pitch, for Andy Crosby’s team.

“I would like to thank the team at Liverpool for entrusting us with one of their highly-rated, elite talents and David Lockwood and Dave Ayres for the work that went into making this deal happen.”

After Williams' return to Liverpool following his disappointing Aberdeen spell, Klopp said: "With Rhys it is slightly different, he will be first with the under-21s. I will have to talk with him about why his loan spell didn’t work out, that was obviously different and the boy I know I would expect to play in Scotland, 100 per cent, from the first to the last second if it is not Celtic or Rangers where it is always slightly different, and he didn’t.

"I will have to talk to him about that and I didn’t do that yet, but it will happen, definitely, and then we will see what’s the outcome of that conversation.”