Ben Davies

AN ARTICLE BY SUPERSUB

So it looks like Ben Davies will be a Rangers player next season, for a transfer fee that’s reported to be around £4m.  Seeing as we signed him for £500K, that’s another good piece of business from those behind the scenes & another sign of a well run football club.   He was also (we presume) useful during the latter half of the 20/21 season, even if it was only by making up the numbers in training.  He probably wouldn’t have been there otherwise.   But, out of all the players at the club, he’s probably the one who we (collectively) know the least about.

So, who is Ben Davies…?    Well, he started at Preston in 2013 & has spent time on loan at places like Tranmere, York & Southport (amongst others) & then spending a few seasons back at Preston, before signing for us in 2021.  I don’t know an awful lot about his time at Preston tbh, coz I’ve never been arsed about Preston really, but he did win the Preston Young Player award in 17/18 & the overall Preston Player of the Year award in 18/19.  He also won another award there, the Sir Tom Finney Player of the Year award.  Now that’s got Tom Finney’s name on it (Shankly’s favourite player), so that makes it very special indeed.

Then, last season, he was on loan at Sheffield Utd, where he made 23 appearances & helped them to reach the play off’s, after finishing 5^th.  He also came on as a late sub vs Blackburn & scored the winner in a 1-0 victory, so that must’ve been a good moment for the lad.  

But what of his time here….?   When it comes to his role in what happened during the second half of 20/21, I guess we’ll never know how much he helped us, in our (successful) attempt to qualify for the CL.  He’s been called a ‘human traffic cone’ (amongst other things), but maybe we’re not being completely fair on the lad…??    If he was needed (& Klopp doesn’t tend to do things, that he doesn’t think needs to be done), then he deserves some credit for that.  It was by the ‘skin of our teeth’ at times that season, but everyone pulled together, in adversity, to achieve a goal.  It was a team effort all round & Ben Davies was a part of that in some way, so thank you Ben, that will always be appreciated.

That was a really tough time for everyone, everywhere & our squad was no exception. But that spirit within the club, the ‘Mentality Monsters’ giving their all for the common cause.  Players like James Milner & Jordan Henderson supporting everyone thru it.  Jurgen, Pep & everyone else….  Ben was a part of all that & he’ll have learnt loads from it.  Stuff that he’d never learn, even if he’d been playing regularly, for Preston during that time.  He was surrounded by the best there is & that’s gotta have been an enlightening (if not frustrating) experience for him.

Ben also seems to be a really good bloke by all accounts (like everyone else here).  Never complaining, doing whatever was asked of him & giving 100%, in whatever he was doing.

Character wise, a typical ‘Klopp’ player.

Personally, him going to Rangers is a weird one for me, coz it’s always been Celtic FC.

You can blame Shanks for that, coupled with a politically active ‘leftie’ Grandfather.

It’s never been about religion tbh.  I do wish the lad well but it’s a bit like wanting to wish Stevie well when he was there, but really struggling to do that at times.  Football loyalties do summat daft to yer head at times.  

But anyway, I digress.  Ben’s 26 now, with a good few years left in his legs & he’ll be joining a very good Rangers side, who’ve just had a great season in Europe & maybe this could be the start of a great new adventure for him & it just might be his time to shine.  He’d deserve that.

So, I hear you ask. why an article about a player who never even played a competitive minute for us & has now gone elsewhere…??   It’s a good question actually & thank you for asking.  I guess I just like little stories like this.  Stories that are miles away from scoring 20+ goals a season, or playing in the Champions League final, but still a part of the story of our club.  To steal a line from Bosch,  “Everybody counts, or nobody counts”.

Plus, Ben Davies has now become my 2^nd ever favourite player, who never actually played competitively for the club.  It’s a very exclusive list.  There might be a part-deux to this, unless someone guesses…….😁

Anyway, good luck Ben & thank you.