Liverpool news: Club caps salary for youth players at £40,000-a-year in move to combat 'too much, too young' issue

Yout players will not be able to earn a basic salary of more than £40,000 in their first year as a professional

Jurgen Klopp believes youth players should be playing as much as possible to aid their development (Getty)

Liverpool are to enforce a new salary cap on players under 17 years old to ensure they do not earn more than £40,000-a-year in their first season as a professional.

Measures are being taken by the Premier League club to try and combat the “too much, too young” that has flooded not just the English top flight, but European football on the whole. Too often players go off the rails when they are given the financial power that comes with being a professional footballer, and Liverpool are looking to try and reduce the risk of young and talented players going to waste.

According to The Telegraph, Liverpool will not sanction any basic salary for a player up to the age of 17 of more then £40,000. The figure can still be increased through bonuses such as making appearances for the under 23s or gaining promotion to the first team, as well as financial rewards for impressing while out on loan at other clubs.

The Reds are not the first team to implement such a strategy after both Tottenham and Southampton took similar action to try and protect young players. The hope is that by capping wages at an early age, players will want to remain at the club for footballing reasons rather than financial incentives, with the desire to break into the first team shining through the club’s academy.

However, Liverpool and other clubs who take a similar approach face a problem in that it’s believed some clubs in the top flight are willing to hand players as young as 16 contracts worth £11,000-a-week, meaning teenagers across the country could face a football vs money dilemma.

Another measure Liverpool are taking is to encourage young players to compete in as much football as possible while they are still at school, even though it goes against Football Association advice. Both manager Jürgen Klopp and the club’s academy director Alex Inglethorpe are in favour of youth players getting as much pitch time under their belt, and Klopp stressed that he will always consider his options in the academy before delving into the transfer market.

“I've always been at clubs for the long-term so when I see a 16-year-old player who is good, I can always wait for him,” said Klopp.

“I can promise that before we sign a player who isn't a lot better than what we already have, we will always use our own boys. That's how the future should be, even in the crazy football transfer world. We want to be this special club.

“That's why I am really interested in the talent groups and all these boys. We have created a situation where all these boys see a real perspective. That's very important. They need to know that there is a way through.”