Jerzy Dudek tells Liverpool academy graduate he's a 'top' talent, he impressed in the League Cup last night

Liverpool cruised into the fourth round of the League Cup on Wednesday night with an emphatic 5-1 victory over West Ham United at Anfield.

The Reds were made to work hard by their Premier League rivals, who took the lead and then threatened to get back in the tie at 2-1 down.

However, Liverpool eventually broke the visitors’ resistance midway through the second half and added two late goals for a resounding final score.

Arne Slot opted for a relatively strong line-up against the Hammers, with no player under 21 taking part in the match.

Nevertheless, some of Liverpool’s younger first-teamers were involved, with Jarell Quansah and Conor Bradley starting, while Tyler Morton came on the bench.

The match also saw arguably the best second-choice Premier League player in his position getting a full 90 minutes under his belt.

The player in question received praise from a number of peers after the game, including from Liverpool icon Jerzy Dudek.

Jerzy Dudek praises Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher

Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher made his second start of the season for the Reds in the midweek win over the Hammers.

It was also his second start in succession after he deputised for the injured Alisson Becker against Bournemouth.

Kelleher could do little about West Ham’s goal and was overall very impressive.

The Liverpool academy graduate pulled off a great save from Michail Antonio in the second half and then smothered the rebound as Max Kilman tried to fire home.

Kelleher took to Instagram after the game to celebrate the Reds’ progress to the next round.

Dudek posted top arrow emojis in response to Kelleher’s post, while Virgil van Dijk posted a hands-up emoji to praise his Anfield colleague.

What does the future hold for Kelleher at Liverpool?

Kelleher has shown time and time again that he’s good enough to be starting regularly for one of the Premier League’s top teams.

However, he is unfortunate in that Alisson, one of the world’s very best goalkeepers, stands in his way at Liverpool.

In addition, the Reds’ signing of Georgi Mamardashvili suggests that Kelleher may not be guaranteed a promotion when Alisson leaves Anfield.

James Pearce recently told the Walk On podcast by the Athletic that “the expectation now is that this will be Kelleher’s last year at the club.”