Liverpool vs Barnsley: Meet the Tykes duo to upset their old club

Yoganathan was the ball boy at Anfield in 2018 when Divock Origi scored a stoppage-time winner against Everton in the Premier League, and he “loved watching” Philippe Coutinho when he was in the club’s academy.

As for Phillips, who retired from motorcycle racing at 16 after winning British titles, there is a link with Coutinho too.

“I was 16 when I went to America with the first team on a pre-season tour in 2014 under Brendan Rodgers and Coutinho was substituted in a game. It was surreal,” he recalls.

“I had just left school and was training with Steven Gerrard, Luis Suarez and Coutinho.”

Such was the hype surrounding Yoganathan’s signing that Rodgers, Liverpool’s manager at the time, was there on the day he joined as an eight-year-old. He was scouted by the Reds when he was six years old.

“I still have the picture in a frame at home next to Brendan and my parents,” says Yoganathan.

However, by 2021, he was looking for another club. That was when Barnsley’s academy director Bobby Hassell – who also played in a cup tie at Anfield 18 years ago – gave him a chance at South Yorkshire.

“It was difficult [getting released]“Any boy who has been released from a football club knows it is one of the most devastating experiences, but it helped me overcome the challenges,” says Yoganathan.

“As a person, it helped me become more flexible. Football is a game of opinions. Someone might start you in League One while other coaches don’t want to give me a chance in academy matches. I’ve learned to overcome that and become more flexible.”

Yoganathan’s footballing journey as a pioneer in South Asia has been well documented, and the teenager insists the whole thing is a bit “crazy”.

“I never thought I would be able to get this platform to show people that it is possible for a Tamil player to play professional football,” he adds. “It’s a bit crazy to say, but I’m glad I can prove it’s possible.”