Northern Ireland’s star man Conor Bradley was sprung from the bench to make his first appearance for Liverpool in six weeks following a hamstring injury.
The Co Tyrone sensation starred against Real Madrid on November 27, registering an assist and bringing Anfield to its feet with an eye-catching sliding tackle on Kylian Mbappe in the 2-0 Champions League win, but had not featured since being substituted in the 87th minute of that game.
However, Reds head coach Arne Slot confirmed his return to action by introducing the 21-year-old to the fray in the 86th minute of the pulsating 2-2 draw with Manchester United on Sunday when he was a like-for-like replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold at right-back.
With the England international heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid, the versatile Bradley has been touted as his long-term successor on the right side of Liverpool’s defence.
The Aghyaran ace helped see out a point for the home side, with Cody Gapko and Mo Salah from the penalty spot turning the tables at Anfield after United opened the scoring at the start of the second-half through Lisandro Martinez.
But Amad Diallo registered an equaliser for the Red Devils 10 minutes from time and Bradley was on the goal-line in a moment of tension when Harry Maguire blazed over right at the death.
The result sees Liverpool stay six points clear at the top of the Premier League after failing to fully capitalise on challengers Arsenal and Chelsea also settling for draws this weekend. The point for United lifts them up a place to 13th.
The Reds are next in action versus Tottenham in the Carabao Cup Semi-Finals on Wednesday when Alexander-Arnold is likely to get the nod again, but Bradley can realistically target a first start since the Madrid encounter in the FA Cup home tie with Accrington Stanley on Saturday, January 11.
Slot confirmed on Friday that Bradley had returned to training for the first time since November, and his return to action is not only a major boost for his club side but also Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill.
Slot said on Friday: “Conor and Ibou (Ibrahima Konate) will train with us today for the first time so I’m interested to see where they exactly are.”