Interview'It's what I've trained for' - Caoimhin Kelleher ready for Premier League chance
Caoimhin Kelleher says he is ready to make his first Premier League appearance of the season for Liverpool against Fulham this weekend.
The Republic of Ireland international is set to deputise for the injured Alisson Becker when the Cottagers visit Anfield on Sunday.
Kelleher has not yet featured in the top flight this term, with his most recent Premier League outing coming away at Southampton on the final day of last season.
But he warmed up for the clash with Fulham by keeping a clean sheet in the 4-0 Europa League win over LASK on Thursday, his sixth appearance of this campaign.
And the 25-year-old feels he is well prepared to take on another challenge as the Reds look to maintain their good start to the league season, telling Liverpoolfc.com: “It’s what I’ve trained for, really.
“It’s been a long time [since I played in the Premier League], but I’m always training for that to try to be ready [so] that if something happens to Ali – and unfortunately something has – then I’m ready to go in and try to help the team get some more wins.”
Liverpool head in to Sunday’s game looking to make it 11 consecutive victories in all competitions at Anfield since the start of the season.
“We are trying to create that fortress again, and trying to win every game here,” Kelleher said. “Obviously it’s a really difficult place to come, we know that, and we’re trying to use the crowd as well.
“The crowd is always here with a great atmosphere, so we’re just trying to create that fortress and trying to get some more wins.”
He added: “In this league now every game is important. You can’t slip up. It’s going to be a tough test with Fulham coming here. They’ll be looking to cause an upset really.
“We need to be ready for that, recover well and then be ready to go again Sunday.”
Kelleher’s focus, naturally, will be on keeping another clean sheet if possible, while at the other end of the pitch Liverpool’s forwards are firing, with Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo (two) and Mohamed Salah all on target for the Reds against LASK.
“I thought we were excellent going forward,” Kelleher said after a result that sealed a place in the Europa League last 16 for Jürgen Klopp’s side.
“We could have had a lot more goals, but we created a lot of chances. Everyone up there looked really sharp and looked in the mood.”
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Watch on YouTubeHe continued: “Goals win games. It’s massive for us. We scored four on Thursday and could have had more.
“It’s important. You have to have that threat, and fortunately we have a lot of options and all can score goals, as they’ve shown.”