Future Stars: Jarell Quansah and Conor Bradley continue to rise in stature

Last season marked the beginning of something new for Liverpool's defense. With the continued playing of Jarell Quansah and Conor Bradley, the youth for the Reds has never looked better.

With the new season underway, we can surely expect even more playing time from the lads under Arne Slot.

Quansah has been our backup center back for the better part of a season now, filling in for Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk when they are absent.

Last season, Quansah made 34 appearances in all competitions, netting 3 goals as well. His development over the last season or two has surely been in part due to the mentorship of the skipper, van Dijk.

Both players share a similar build and playing style, being true stoppers and the last line of defense when on the pitch.

Bradley stepped up in a big way for Liverpool last season when Trent Alexander-Arnold was out with a knee injury in January.

While relatively untested up until that point, Bradley played with ferocity, often being the hardest working player on the pitch.

Last season he made 23 appearances, netting a goal to go along with his 6 assists. As a playmaking right back, it's only natural he play in the same role as Alexander-Arnold when replacing him. His level was so high that there were times our No. 66 was not missed, but only at times of course.

There shouldn't be too much change in the way either of these players perform in their roles under Slot.

Bradley may be forced to play wider up the pitch more often to allow for overlapping runs between him and winger Mo Salah. This fits into Slots tactical approach of the double pivoting defensive midfielders looking to play the ball to wide wingers on attack.

This would not be new for him though as he plays very advanced for the Northern Ireland national team and it could just unlock another dimension of his game.

My prediction for Quansah is that he will eventually be a replacement for van Dijk when the time comes for him to retire or depart.

While this seems to be a distant thought, giving him the playing time and experience he needs to develop now is essential to get him to that point.

As for Bradley, I see Alexander-Arnold continuing to start for us for the foreseeable future, but that's not to say that with hard work and dedication, Bradley could make things much more competitive in terms of the starting right back at Liverpool.