Jordan Ibe: Liverpool youngster keen to make his mark on first team

The 18 year-old spent the second half the season helping Birmingham avoid relegation from the Championship and is now back at Liverpool, looking to replicate the success fellow youngster Raheem Sterling has experienced.

"Raheem has done extremely well. He's kicked on to another level this season. I'm really happy for him, and hopefully he can continue playing at that level with Liverpool and with England," Ibe told the Liverpool Echo.

"He's someone I look up to, definitely. He plays in a similar position and he's a similar age. He's someone I watch in training and try to learn from in the way he plays.

"I watch Raheem, Daniel Sturridge and the other attacking players in training. I just try to learn from them, improve myself and hopefully if and when I get my chance in the first team I will be ready to take it."

Reds boss Brendan Rodgers got a view of the progress Ibe had made in a friendly against Shamrock Rovers last week where he provided two assists and picked up the man of the match award.

"It was a great experience to play in the Aviva in front of so many supporters. It's a great stadium and the fans were terrific. I thought it was a great match, and I was just happy to help the team," he added.

"I was disappointed to miss a few chances, but I can't be too down. I set up two of the goals, and I thought the team played well. It was nice for me to get the man of the match award too.

"It's new to me, but I like to play in the free role and have the freedom to move around, so it suited me. I enjoyed it.

"It was a new experience for me, the manager challenged me to show what I can do in that position and I enjoyed myself."

Ibe made 11 appearances for Birmingham while on loan, scoring once and playing a vital role to ensure Blues stayed out of the relegation zone, and enjoyed his time under Lee Clark.

"It was a great experience. To play in the Championship and to see how it is, the pressure that you are under, was really good for my development," he said.

"You're playing every week, and in great stadiums up and down the country, and every game really matters.

"I learnt a lot at Birmingham, and my hope now is that I can bring what I learnt back to Liverpool. I'll be back for pre-season now and ready to go next season hopefully."