A former Liverpool player who was a 'massive' Everton fan 'couldn't bear to put on their kit' during his bittersweet spell at the club.
That's according to current Salford City manager Karl Robinson, who coached at the Liverpool youth academy.
Robinson claims Jordan Rossiter, who graduated from the club's youth academy, 'hated' Liverpool and was banned from wearing the Everton kit in the gym during his spell at Anfield.
Rossiter, a diehard Everton supporter, came through the ranks at Liverpool before breaking into the first-team, aged 17.
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He made his Liverpool debut against Middlesbrough in a League Cup clash under Brendan Rodgers.
Rossiter was compared to Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard for his leadership qualities and played in Jurgen Klopp's legendary reign.
But he made just five senior appearances for the Reds before completing a move to Rangers.
Speaking to the I Had Trials Once podcast, Robinson recalled his time with Rossiter at the Liverpool youth academy.
"He was a massive Everton fan so we had to ban him from wearing an Everton kit in the gym, but he hated Liverpool so much that he would just wear Celtic kit instead because he couldn’t bear to put a Liverpool kit on," he revealed.
"He refused to wear the Liverpool kit because he was such a big Everton fan and that isn’t uncommon because so many players in the Liverpool academy who were local would’ve been Everton fans."
Robinson added: "I’m sure it would have been the same at Everton’s academy where they would have had lads who were massive Liverpool fans.”
In 2020, Rossiter opened up about his experience at Liverpool and explained the decision behind his transfer to Rangers.
"You’ve got to be honest with yourself,” he told The Athletic. “I was training under Klopp, but not really making an impact.
"The reality was that I wasn’t going to be good enough to play every week at a huge club like Liverpool. Look at the names I was up against. The bar was set so high. We’re talking top pros. There’s no point kidding yourself. They were on a different level.
"I knew I needed to drop down a level or two. I thought I’d have a better chance of playing regularly at Rangers."
Rossiter, now at Oldham Athletic, added: "I learned so much from my time at Liverpool. I was like a sponge around Melwood, just trying to absorb all this information. Just looking at how Henderson and (James) Milner conduct themselves - how they prepare, how they lead their lives, picking up little things about recovery, nutrition and gym work. I was lucky to get that insight.
"It’s superb to see what Liverpool have achieved over the past couple of seasons. They’re going to win the Premier League and they deserve it.”
Nasir Jabbar