At the age of just 16 years and six days, Jerome Sinclair became Liverpool’s youngest ever player when he appeared for the club against West Brom in a League Cup tie back in September 2012.
“A dream come true,” Sinclair said afterward. Liverpool boss at the time, Brendan Rodgers, added: “Now the hard work begins for Jerome. It’s no good being the youngest player and then drifting out of it. Thankfully, he’s a good kid and he’s really focused. That hunger to learn can take you a long way.” Sinclair had actually spent much of his youth career at West Brom before Liverpool snapped him up.
“All the top clubs wanted Jerome, and we were delighted that we were able to get him when he was 14,” Frank McParland, who was Liverpool’s academy director at the time, said. More than 10 years later, Sinclair is still Liverpool’s youngest ever player, but his career now looks close to its end at just 28 years old.
What Happened to Jerome Sinclair
Sinclair’s story is one of unfilled potential. He only played four more times for the club – two of them under recently-departed manager, Jurgen Klopp. In fact, he has a first-team goal under his belt, having scored for Liverpool against Exeter City in the FA Cup. He made his Premier League debut away to Chelsea at the end of the 2014/15 season, before appearing in Steven Gerrard’s final appearance at Anfield against Crystal Palace.
He has previously thanked Gerrard for putting him under his wing – and allowing him to play with his idol, Thierry Henry. “There were some huge names in that dressing room, like (Luis) Suarez and (Philippe) Coutinho but Gerrard was the best — there would be moments in training when he’d do something with the ball and people would just stop and clap,” Sinclair said in 2020.
“Gerrard was very good with me and made me feel involved. He asked me to play in his all-star charity game against Jamie Carragher’s team. I started in the front three with Thierry Henry and Ryan Babel. I can never thank him enough for giving me the opportunity to meet my idol.”
It looked as though Sinclair would have a long and successful career at Anfield, but it ended unceremoniously. He teamed up with Aidy Ward – the agent responsible for Raheem Sterling’s exit from Liverpool – and Sinclair turned down a contract offer from Liverpool despite his young age.
Jurgen Klopp on Jerome SinclairSinclair didn’t live up to the potential Klopp had envisaged
“What we try to do is create a situation where younger players know it is not important to get the highest wages in your life in the first year of your career, Jurgen Klopp said in 2015. “It is more important to get the real education and that is what we want to try. For this you always need a lot of things. I like Jerome. He is a real talent and if he wants to stay with us, no problem. Absolutely no problem.
“If not, we cannot force it. But I know nothing about this situation. I am fine with the situation, but first of all, you need young players who want to learn. If we can create a situation where they feel it is the right place to learn then everything is good. That is what we try for next season. We cannot do it now. It is too big a rush, leaving on loan, coming back, that is what we want to do for the future.
As long as he is here he is a Liverpool player, absolutely no problem, but I cannot make decisions for them. We can only offer things and, first, we need to offer education and training and the possibility to work together with the best coaches and best players we have. Then it is up to the players.”
He would leave Liverpool for Watford in January 2016 and his career wouldn’t recover. He failed to kick on at Vicarage Road and only made a handful of appearances before loan spells at various clubs in England (Sunderland, Birmingham and Oxford), as well as at VVV-Venlo in the Netherlands and CSKA Sofia in Russia. He was eventually released from his Watford contract in 2021 and hasn’t found a new club since, despite being just 28 years old.
Sinclair’s best bet for first-team football came when rejoined Oxford on a trial basis during the 2022–23 pre-season, playing his first match in over a year in a friendly against Banbury United. However, he did not earn a contract, and by January 2023, he appeared to have stepped away from football to focus on other business interests. Ultimately, he made 110 appearances in total following on from his debut at Liverpool in 2012, which renders regretful reading for those who believed in him at such a young age.
Sinclair Now Owns a Fried Chicken Shop And Plays in ‘Baller League
Sinclair is now the owner of a Morley’s shop – a chain of fried chicken takeaways across the UK. Last July, Morley’s tweeted: “Welcome to the Morley’s family Jerome Sinclair.” They confirmed to the Athletic it was, indeed, that Jerome Sinclair, and that he was the current owner of their Birmingham franchise.
Karl Robinson, who managed Sinclair at Oxford, wished him the best of luck with his business venture. “I know he’s based in Birmingham, and he’s got a good business head on him. He’s got interests outside of football. I just want him to be happy. Whether it’s playing football again or not, as long as he’s happy, that’s all that matters.”
It’s unknown whether he will return to the professional scene, but Sinclair still plays the sport and now features in the newly formed ‘Baller League’. The six-a-side competition, which takes place at the Copper Box Arena in London on a weekly basis and is aired on Sky Sports, is made up of 12 teams featuring former Premier League players, futsal players and celebrities.
Sinclair plays for VZNFC, which is managed by Sidemen member Tobi Brown (TBJZL). Former Premier League player Henri Lansbury also plays for the team, while ex-Liverpool teammate Jordon Ibe and former Watford defender Adrian Mariappa are among the other big names taking part in the competition.
