Caoimhin Kelleher reveals vital Alisson lesson he took from Liverpool

Caoimhin Kelleher spent seven seasons at Liverpool training alongside Alisson and deputising in his absence, and there was a vital trait he observed in the Brazilian.

Kelleher became a reliable deputy during seasonal absences for Alisson, but his aspirations to become a No. 1 meant he swapped Anfield for Brentford in the summer.

He is now 11 appearances away from surpassing his career-high outings at Liverpool in a single season (26), with life as the first-choice currently treating him well.

And Kelleher’s years of training alongside Alisson helped put him in a position to excel at Brentford, as he explained to Ben Foster on the Fozcast podcast.

“That’s something I’ve seen myself and learning from him, just watching him even, you see he always just tries to stay calm whatever happens,” Kelleher said.

“I’m lucky myself that, naturally, my personality is laidback, but you look at him as well, he doesn’t react. If he makes a great save, just carry on; if he makes a mistake, just carry on.

“It’s alright, just stay at that level. He’s never too much up or too much down, which I think is probably important as a goalie.”

There are definitely similarities in their calm disposition!

Alisson is the “best to ever be in the Premier League”

After seven years working closey with Alisson, being calm between the goalposts was not the only thing Kelleher took away from his time as the Brazilian’s understudy.

“For sure, definitely [learned a lot from Alisson],” he said, before underlining what Liverpool fans know to be true, that he is the Premier League‘s finest.

“I came up to the first team the year he joined, my first full season with the first team, so I was lucky in a sense that as soon as he came I was training every day with him.

“He was incredible. For me, I think he’s the best to ever be in the Premier League. He’s special at everything.

“You probably know yourself when you’re training with a goalkeeper, he’s amazing at some things; this guy, he’s amazing at everything. I personally think so, but it’s subjective, isn’t it?

“He can make amazing saves and he can also get a lot of assists as well. He’s got everything.”

While Kelleher would have continued to get games at Liverpool – Giorgi Mamardashvili already has 10 appearances – the Irishman does not regret taking the next step in his career.

“I love it now,” he said of being Brentford‘s No. 1. “It’s amazing to be playing every game. But I think it’s definitely a change of psyche, probably for me as well.

“Because at Liverpool I’d play maybe 10 games but I know there’s an end to that, I know at some point when Alisson‘s back I’m coming out. So it’s nice to have that, that I’m going to play every game.”