Liverpool are poised for a major squad shake-up for the summer transfer window after undergoing a very disappointing season by their standards. The Reds missed out on a top-4 finish, meaning they’ll be playing in the UEFA Europa League next season.
Jurgen Klopp’s side is currently undergoing a bit of a transitional period, in which the German manager is keen on offloading the unnecessary players and replacing them with bright, young talent. The Reds already released five players from their contracts in the summer, including the likes of Roberto Firmino as well as veteran James Milner.
But one player who is probably safe for the time being is young midfielder, Curtis Jones. The 22-year-old midfielder, a product of their own youth academy, climbed over the pecking order towards the end of the 2022/23 season with a string of impressive performances.
Indeed, the midfielder scored three goals in their final six Premier League games, helping his side at least stay alive in the top-4 race until the last few matches. Jones is still a work in progress and has a lot to improve in his game, but is an energetic, hard-working player that is well-suited for Klopp’s high-press style.
As Jones waits for next season where the competitiveness will be even higher with the introduction of a World Cup winner like Alexis Mac Allister, who is tipped to join Liverpool soon, he’s currently away on vacation like the rest of his teammates.
The 22-year-old midfielder appears to be currently enjoying his holidays in the USA – spending some valuable personal time with his family members and loved ones. During his holiday, it also appears that Jones managed to catch up with famous rapper and music producer Dr Dre.
Dre is recognized as one of the best music producers of his time and has had an influence on the rise of major rap artists like Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar and Eminem. He has won multiple Grammy awards in his career and is considered a legend of the music industry.
Some Liverpool fans were quite surprised to see Jones manage to pose for a picture with Dre because this is a link-up which not many could’ve actually envisioned. A few supporters felt that Jones might’ve bumped into the rapper and gotten him to take a picture with him as a fanboy, but that actually isn’t the case at all.
That is because Dr Dre is actually a big Liverpool fan and has been following the club for many years now. He loves watching football (or soccer as it’s called in the USA) and has even professed his love for Liverpool in the past.
Dre has actually been a Liverpool supporter since way back in 1998 when he got to watch their dominant team perform while on a promotional tour with the famous rap group NWA. This is how he described falling in love with Liverpool: “They’re the team I always look out for when I’m at home. Back in 1988 I was in London on a promotional tour with NWA, and one night we were watching TV and these cool cats in red came on the box. They whupped some poor dudes four or five zip.”
He even gave an interview to Liverpool’s official media back in 2001 in what is described as ‘the strangest interview ever’ by the club’s own website. Dre revealed in the interview that his favourite players (back in 2001) were Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Jamie Redknapp.
The rapper even seemingly voiced his dismay that soccer wasn’t covered that extensively (as it is today) in the USA and claimed he only got to watch round-up shows every Monday to watch the Reds in action.
Finally, Dre was asked about his prediction for Liverpool’s 2001/02 Premier League season in that interview – to which he answered that they’ll finish above Manchester United in the table. He got that prediction absolutely spot on, as the Reds finished three points above their arch-rivals to secure a top-2 finish in the league.
Fast-forward two decades to that interview and Dre still seems to be a big Liverpool fan and quite aware of their first-team players. With the Anfield Stadium getting an expansion, which will allow 61,000 supporters (an increase from 53,000 in the past) – to watch matches – perhaps the Reds can invite the Dr to get something more than the television experience and get to watch his favourite team in action at Anfield itself next season.
