The left winger in action against Bolton Wanderers in the Sixth Round of The FA Youth Cup.
By Nicholas Veevers - Friday, 22 May, 2009
Left winger wants to lift The Youth Cup.
Arsenal v LiverpoolThe FA Youth Cup sponsored by E.ONThe Final, first leg8pm, Friday 22 May 2009Emirates StadiumLive on Setanta Sports 1Having seen his father Paul involved in football at the highest level during his formative years, Liverpool winger Thomas Ince is now hoping he can step out from that shadow and help the Reds to some silverware this season.The 17-year-old has played a key role throughout the previous rounds of The FA Youth Cup in helping Liverpool to reach The Final and he is now ready to line-up for the first leg at the Emirates Stadium on Friday."It's brilliant," Ince said of the opportunity to play at Arsenal’s 60,000-capacity home."Only a few young players get to come and play at a stadium like Anfield, it's a great experience and hopefully in The Final, at the Emirates Stadium, that will be a great experience for the lads as well."Liverpool sealed their place in The Final following a convincing Semi-Final success against Birmingham City over two legs, with the Reds running out 3-0 victors at St.Andrews and then tying things up with a 3-1 win at Anfield in the second leg.Finnish striker Lauri Dalla Valle netted four of those six Semi-Final goals so he will no doubt be a dangerman for Arsenal to keep an eye on this evening and Ince believes that the Anfield youngsters know that if they can make an impression on the big stage in The Final then it may lead to more opportunities in the future.This is Liverpool’s third FA Youth Cup Final in four seasons and they won The Cup in both 2006 and 2007. And with the likes of Liverpool greats Michael Owen and Jamie Carragher on the winning side back in 1996, Ince knows that impressing in the competition can be a springboard to the first team."It just shows to the manager that there is good talent in the team," he said of Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez, who sent a personal good luck message to the team which they watched on a DVD before the Semi-Final game at Anfield."At least our names are up there and the manager can have a look."We've done very well and I'm sure the manager is proud."
