Conor Bradley cuts a relaxed figure when he speaks in Liverpool interviews, something that has been a more regular occurrence this season than it was last term.
He’s careful with his responses, often guarded and keen not to provoke headlines or negative media reactions, as is often the case with the modern media-trained player.
However, on the pitch he’s ferocious - just ask Kylian Mbappe and Heung-min Son, two players who have been on the receiving end of crunching tackles from the Northern Ireland international this season.
But he’s never one to engage in disagreements or start an on-field ruckus, despite his physical approach. So it might come as a surprise to learn he was involved in one of the biggest arguments between Jurgen Klopp and his assistant Pep Lijnders during their time at Liverpool.
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Bradley may not even be aware of the fall out that his loan move Bolton Wanderers caused in 2022 - well, at least until the airing of the new Amazon Prime Doubters to Believers documentary.
The four-part series tells the story of Klopp’s departure from Liverpool and reflects on his eight and a half years at the club. There were plenty of highs and lows in that period, as those who lived it explained during the documentary, including Lijnders
“I remember that I really fought, proper fought, for Conor to be our no.2 behind Trent [Alexander-Arnold],” the Dutchman revealed. “I was really trying to keep him in the club because I believed that he would already be ready at that time.”
However, Liverpool instead opted to loan Bradley to Bolton for the 2022/23 campaign, a term in which he played 53 games, won three Player of the Season awards and helped the club win the EFL Trophy. While the loan worked out, the decision didn’t sit well with Lijnders at the time.
"The club makes the decision together with Jurgen get him out on loan, and it really, really upset me a lot. There were hard, hard words and it was probably one of the only confrontations I had with Jurgen. He won't remember it anyway but I remember it.”
Bradley returned to Liverpool the following season, making his full Premier League debut in January 2024, the same month Klopp confirmed his decision to leave the club.
The right-back has since gone on to establish himself as one of Arne Slot’s trusted players and, potentially, Liverpool’s next first-choice right-back if Alexander-Arnold leaves this summer.
