Okay, so here’s this thing about Ben Doak, right? You know, the Liverpool winger who’s got everyone kinda buzzing even while he’s been out healing up and all. Like, he was doing this killer loan gig at Middlesbrough, and then — bam — thigh surgery hits in March. Yikes. Back he goes to Liverpool for the whole mend and fix thing. Healing up in Liverpool is like a great excuse to grab a decent pie, I guess?
Anyway, he’s got this eye on pre-season, you see. Arne Slot’s guys kick it all off around July 7, and Ben’s like, “Gotta be ready!” And even though he should be vegging out post-season — he went to the Algarve, fancy, right? — he’s all about the early prep. Guess some people can’t sit still. Oh, but now he’s back on the pitch, signed off on dribbling and passing and whatnot. He’s doing his thing with the Empire Performance Elite gang. Uh, sounds swanky?
And there’s this whole mix-up of players training there too: Charlie McArthur, Dylan Reid, and Stevie Mallan. Drills, cheers, high-fives, I assume. But then there’s this curveball: he might bail on Liverpool before things even get rolling for the new season. Something about Everton poking around with, like, thirty million on the table…crazy money, especially when Ipswich and Crystal Palace had their lowball bids shut down cold in January.
Oh, Mohamed Salah? Impossible to nudge out. That guy’s locked in tight on the right wing. And Jeremie Frimpong just swooped in for, what, £29.5 million? He’s a natural right-back but still, more competition! How do you even….
The real kicker is whether Doak can wow Slot during the first couple of pre-season weeks. The big heads at the club think he’s got that magic — but when it comes to making the coach’s cut? Who knows?
So there he is, grafting hard now. Whether it’s to smash it with Liverpool or head into a new gig with lights blazing — time’s gonna tell. Back at Boro, he snagged three goals and seven assists in 24 showings. They were hopeful for playoffs…until he had to check out with that bum leg. Can’t catch a break, huh?
