He has man-marked Francesco Totti and played with Luis Suarez in friendly matches, but now Liverpool's highly-rated Ryan McLaughlin is looking forward to making his professional debut with Barnsley.
The 19-year-old right-back from Northern Ireland signed for the Reds yesterday on a 28-day loan which means he will be available from tomorrow's visit to Charlton until the match at home to Ipswich Town on February 8. He has been at Anfield for three seasons and has rubbed shoulders with plenty of World Class players.
He told the Chronicle: "I played with Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard when they were coming back from injury and in training. They are really good with the young lads as are all the first teamers.
"I have had help from Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel and Jamie Carragher before he retired. The manager Brendan Rodgers is very good with young players and I am really looking forward to my future there."
He is also excited about his immediate future with the Reds. He said: "It's fundamental to me to be out there playing football. The Championship is a good standard and I am just looking forward to helping Barnsley. It's been great so far. I like the club and the stadium. Liverpool showed me the video highlights of Barnsley's games against Derby and Bolton and Birmingham and I could see they had played well and were unlucky. I know they can push on out of the relegation zone."
McLaughlin marked Italy World Cup winner and Roma legend Totti in a friendly in America in 2012. He said: "It was a great experience. He is not as quick as he used to be but his skills are unbelievable."
