Charlton loan ace Liam Millar wanted Championship move in January + reveals why he was happy to stay in Liverpool’s U23s for a year

BY RICHARD CAWLEY

Charlton loanee Liam Millar reckons he needed an extended period back in U23 football to build his confidence levels after his second stay with Kilmarnock went sour.

The Liverpool player had two temporary stints with the Scottish top-flight outfit.

“I had one half-decent spell at Kilmarnock and the second time I really struggled,” said Millar.

“There were things off the pitch that happened which I prefer not to speak about. And on the pitch too – I don’t think a lot of us had chemistry on that team. Maybe it was me. Probably it was me. But I don’t think the style at times suited the way I want to play.

“I struggled in a way that I wasn’t confident in my ability any more. I had a bad spell at that time which is okay, because everyone has that at one point in your career. It’s about how you react. It’s why I spent almost a year at Liverpool because I was working on things to get better at and getting my confidence back with the U23s, so I could go back out and do well.

“Taking that year off men’s football has really helped me, I can see that in my game.”

Millar was keen on a loan before the campaign started but had his sights set on England’s second tier. He said: “Even in January I was still looking in the Championship, but I wasn’t guaranteed to play every game and I wasn’t guaranteed a lot of minutes. Clubs wanted me to prove myself before they took a risk on me.

“When Charlton came about I was very keen. I spoke to Julian Ward [Liverpool assistant sporting director] and a couple of other guys who are involved in the loans. They felt it would be a great move for me. They are fighting for promotion and one of the better teams in the league.”

Photo by Paul Edwards