Neil Critchley has witnessed first-hand how the EFL Trophy has shaped the next generation.

The 44-year-old oversaw Liverpool Under-21s’ entry into the competition in 2019 which gave some the Club’s exciting prodigies a chance to make an impression.

Critchley, now head coach at Blackpool, is enthused by what the competition will offer this season it gets underway next week and the Tangerines kick off their campaign Northern Group A which they share with Liverpool.

“Sometimes the best form of coaching is providing the right opportunities to the players at the right time,” he explains.

“You can spend all the time in the world on the grass – which is obviously beneficial as well – but putting the players completely outside of their comfort zone in the heat of the battle is where learning takes place very quickly. We found that in this competition.”

Notable names to feature in the competition for the Merseysiders under Critchley’s tutelage include current first-teamers Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones.

Others, such as Neco Williams who was loaned out to Fulham in the Sky Bet Championship before signing for newly promoted Premier League side Nottingham Forest, moved on from Anfield after impressing in the EFL Trophy.

“The players were then looked upon differently for those experiences, both from outside but also inwardly in the Football Club,” Critchley notes. “You learn so much about those young players on nights like that.

“People are always looking at those games for possible loans for young players. It’s a case of who is the next one? Who can we go and get? That’s the same for me now being at Blackpool.

“The players loved the competition. We had some really difficult games, but you want your young players to have some adversity and have some challenges because they have to build up their resilience. You look at the ones that thrive in those situations and the ones who might need a bit of help.”

Elliott – who became the Club’s youngest-ever player in the Carabao Cup later that term when he was name in the starting XI against MK Dons – scored on his debut against Oldham Athletic in the EFL Trophy after making the switch from Fulham in 2019/20.

Critchley caught his first glimpse of the starlet when he played the full 90 minutes against the Latics in Liverpool’s Group Stage opener.

He recalls: “It was Harvey’s first game and we were playing Oldham away. It was the first time I’d met him. I’d spoken to him on the phone and he’d only just signed for the Club and he came that evening and played. We had a few other players in that competition. It was a great learning curve for them.”

This season, Liverpool Under-21s return to the competition for a fifth year, and Critchley was involved in the decision to participate in the EFL Trophy for the first time while heading up the Reds’ Under-23s setup.

“Other teams had spoken well of the competition and about exposing their young players to help them develop and we thought it was a natural step for us,” he explains. “That came from the Academy manager Alex Inglethorpe at the top who was always putting the players first and thinking about what was right for the players.”

Critchley seized the opportunity to take Liverpool’s array of talent to the next level was one of the many benefits.

“It was brilliant for them to play in stadiums against men, playing with the pressure of getting a result because wanted to try and qualify and go as far as we could in the competition,” he adds. “It was a great experience for them.

“We wanted to expose our young players to senior football and men’s football. That was the next step for those players. Coming through the Academy, normally you’re exposed to just your age group and not open age football. Playing against men is completely different and we wanted our players to experience playing against men.”

The competition also allowed Critchley’s players to get as many minutes under their belt as possible to stand them in good stead for what was to come.

“We also wanted them to have a busy game schedule,” he continues. “If our players were going to go out on loan or permanently to other Clubs, they had to get used to playing Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday. We wanted to try and replicate what a 46-game season is like.

“We played Under-21s fixtures and we played in the Premier League Cup and the Premier League International Cup. We were very fortunate because we played in tournaments like the UEFA Youth League. We had some varied experiences and some brilliant times but the EFL was different, playing under the lights at night against crowds.”

The EFL Trophy has produced some of the stars of the future with the likes of Arsenal and England internationals Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice experiencing their first taste of professional football in the competition, and they won’t be the last.

Critchley explains: “If you look over the last five years at the players that have played in this competition and had exposure, there has been some players who are now playing for England and gone on and played in the Premier League.

“They speak fondly about the competition and they’ll have memories from it. They’ll have grown and benefitted from those experiences.”

Two-time winners of the competition Blackpool lifted the trophy in 2002, beating Cambridge United 4-1 in the Final, and again in 2004, running out 2-0 winners over Southend United. Both victories came under former England midfielder Steve McMahon.

“We’ve won this competition before many years ago and we want to go as far as we can,” Critchley highlights. “It’s a possibility and Blackpool have done it before so why not again?

“We’re really looking forward to it. It gives us a chance to possibly look at some of our young players in certain games. Any competition where you’ve got a chance to play at Wembley at the end of it is one that we take seriously. How many opportunities do you get in your career to have a chance to play at Wembley?

“First and foremost, you look at your Group and how you navigate that. That’ll be our aim – we want to progress from the Group first. Winning games is good for breeding confidence and momentum. I’m excited by the competition.”

Critchley left his role with the Liverpool Academy in March 2020 to take up his first managerial post at Blackpool as the Tangerines’ new head coach. Earlier in the summer – following a stint as Aston Villa’s assistant boss and a spell at QPR – he returned to Bloomfield Road.

And the Blackpool boss will be reunited with some familiar faces when Liverpool visit Bloomfield Road in October.

“I went back there at the end of last season to see everybody,” Critchley says. “I’ll be really looking forward to that game and seeing some of the staff and the young players who I coached and have now progressed and developed to see how they’ve come on. It’ll be a really good evening.”