In brief
Trent Alexander-Arnold’s fast corner helped Liverpool pull off a historic comeback against Barcelona.
The famous corner that resulted in the goal was made possible by the swift action of ball boy Oakley Cannonier.
With strong stats, Cannonier, a striker in Liverpool’s academy, has demonstrated considerable promise.
One of the best days in Liverpool’s history will always be May 7, 2019. The Reds’ victory over Barcelona in their Champions League semi-final second-leg match at Anfield required a miracle. They lost 3-0, finishing the first leg in second place. However, Liverpool memorably pulled off a stunning comeback to win 4-0 and advance to the championship game.
Trent Alexander-Arnold swiftly took a corner, which led to Divock Origi scoring their fourth goal of the evening. After seeing Barcelona’s players were out of position, the defender crossed the ball just right for his teammate, who scored with skill from a few yards out.
However, the goal would not have been possible without the actions of Oakley Cannonier, the ball boy for Liverpool, who almost immediately gave Alexander-Arnold another after the ball went out of play, allowing the right-back and Origi to surprise Barca’s players. Watch the amazing moment in the video below:
The Current Location of Oakley Cannonier
The forward is a member of Liverpool’s youth squad.
The young player, who turned 21 on May 6, is reportedly displaying promise at the club’s academy. A few months after his performance in the Champions League semi-final, Cannonier, a gifted striker, scored his first goal for Liverpool’s Under-18 division.
As he persisted, he signed his first professional deal with the team in 2021. The Englishman has provided evidence to support Liverpool’s choice to award him that contract. During the 2021–22 season, Cannonier scored 30 goals in 37 appearances for the Reds’ minor squads. Watch the video below to see Cannonier’s 2021–22 highlights:
Cannonier had a fiery start to the 2022–2023 season. He opened Liverpool’s UEFA Youth League campaign with seven goals in only four games. He scored twice in his first two games and was called up for England’s U19 team due to his form. He finished with 12 goals in all competitions for Liverpool’s youth team, however he missed a significant portion of the season due to a number of injury issues.
The child’s story has been similar for the last few seasons. He only made five Premier League 2 appearances in 2023–2024; in 2024–2025, he has only made two appearances in the league and appeared in two EFL Trophy games.
It appears he will not be with the club for long. When Cannonier joined Leeds on trial back in January, there were rumours that Liverpool might allow him to leave on a free transfer. Although he didn’t finish his transfer to his boyhood club, it is nearly a given that he will leave in the summer given that he hasn’t played for the Reds since.
People refer to me as a Liverpool legend, says Oakley Cannonier.
Even the young player’s contributions against Barcelona were acknowledged by Jurgen Klopp.
In 2022, Cannonier discussed his thoughts on the memorable match against Barcelona in an interview with Liverpool’s official website. He stated:
“Because we were trailing 3-0 and Liverpool was clearly losing, the assistant manager informed our coach Carl that the ball needed to be in quick for the intensity of the game and other things. In order to get the ball back on the pitch, you had to move quickly. When I returned to school the following day, every Liverpool supporter in our school approached me and exclaimed, “You won us the game!” There were so many people approaching me that I had to move to another room.
In addition to saying, “It still is a bit mad,” Cannonier disclosed that Jurgen Klopp still praises him for his role on that historic night. Social media users are contacting me and referring to me as a Liverpool legend.
He went on to say: “I trained with the first team a few weeks ago and the boss came up to me, and he was like, ‘I just need to thank you’ for what I did.”
Cannonier, meanwhile, is not interested in being referred to as a ball boy. He is committed to becoming as successful for the club as Alexander-Arnold was. “If you look at what Trent has done with Liverpool’s first team and won things with them, I’d love to do that,” the striker continued. You understand what I mean when I say that I don’t want to be a ball-boy legend.”
Statistics for Liverpool by Oakley Cannonier
Time of year
Games
Objectives
Helps
2020–2021
8.
4.
0
2021–2022
37
30
5.
2022–2023
Twelve
10.
0
2023–2024
5.
0
0
2024–2025
4.
0
0
The 21-year-old appears to be a true talent, and he would be joining the ranks of players who have recently advanced to the senior squad, such as Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Jayden Danns, and many others, if he were to play for Liverpool’s first team in the future.
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