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Liverpool U23s boss Michael Beale praised star man Trent Alexander-Arnold after the Reds’ win over Sunderland on Sunday.

But Beale is still challenging the young Scouser to produce performances on a consistent basis.

Danny Ings scored twice, but Alexander-Arnold was the star of the show at Prenton Park as Liverpool moved joint second in the Premier League table with a 3-0 win over a highly-rated Black Cats team.

The 17-year-old scored the Reds’ third goal, reward for an all-action display from right back.

Alexander-Arnold has already had a taste of the first team, appearing on the bench for Jurgen Klopp’s senior side at Arsenal last month, and Beale has been delighted by the youngster’s progress.

“He’s young and he’s playing ever so well,” he told the ECHO. “It’s not too long since he had his debut for the U23s against Manchester City, and that was difficult for him.

“I thought Sunderland would be a test for him because (George) Honeyman is one of the best wingers in the U23 league. He’s played in Sunderland’s first team, he’s a good player and I thought Trent would have more of a defensive role.

“But he never. He won that battle convincingly really, and when he went forward he was threatening every time.

“Speed, aggression, strength; he had it all. But I just want him to knock out 10 performances. He’s had two or three, let’s see if he can knock out 10 and go from there.

“The confidence of training with the first team on a regular basis, you can see the development he has made. Training at Melwood every day with top players, you can iron out mistakes and go to another level.”

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Beale was also enthused by the performance of Pedro Chirivella against Sunderland. The Spanish midfielder had a hand in both of Ings’ goals, and recorded his first 90 minutes of the campaign in the process.

“Pedro has always been highly thought of by the Academy staff,” he said. “Brendan Rodgers had him and Jurgen has had him too. A lot of good people think he’s a top player.

“I think the adjustment to English football has happened now, he’s fully acclimatised. Before there were some games where he would get railroaded, if you like. But he’s becoming a young man now and carrying his body well.

“It’s similar to Ovie (Ejaris) in a way. Now, they’re able to withstand 90 minutes at that intensity a lot easier.

“That was Pedro’s first 90 minutes this season, which is great. I thought out of midfield three, he was the pick today, and there’s some talent in that three.”

Beale was able to leave out the likes of Cameron Brannagan and Joe Maguire for the game, but says he will rotate his squad again for Wednesday’s International Cup game against Wolfsburg.

“It’s hard because Connor Randall comes in and Joe Maguire misses out,” he said. “I thought the Spurs game was Joe’s best game, but he had to miss out here.

“They understand though. You’re playing three games a week. Today we had to take out Cam Brannagan, Matty Virtue had a toe problem and wasn’t involved. And you’re still bringing in Pedro and Ovie.

“What it shows is that we have a lot of good young players. The nice thing this season is that there are more games, so we can make changes on Wednesday and then Sunday.

“There should be competition for places at a big club. That’s how it should be. We’ve hidden that in the past, if you like, by having lots of players out on loan, but now they are all back in, it’s reality if you like. They’ve all got to fight, and whoever shows up well at Melwood will get the opportunity to play.

“It’s about being fair to the players we’ve got as well. Players like Tom Brewitt, he’s out of tune. His application has been fantastic, but he’s found that Tiago Ilori and Corey Whelan have done particularly well. Joe Maguire, Juanma, they’re missing out because others are doing well.

“Its what you want as a manager. I heard Jurgen say something similar recently, that if he’s got tough decisions to make then it means the club is in a good place. I’ve got a problem at the minute, because we’ve got a lot of good young players looking to stake their claim.

“I’ll make changes, but I won’t know for certain until the next 24-48 hours.”