London: Brentford has signed goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher from Liverpool on a permanent deal. The Republic of Ireland international has penned a five-year contract with an option to extend his stay by a further 12 months.
The London club announced Kelleher’s acquisition just after Bayer Leverkusen confirmed the signing for former Brentford goalkeeper, Mark Flekken.
Kelleher, a two-time Premier League winner, departs Arne Slot’s side having made 67 appearances across all competitions, keeping 24 clean sheets .He joined Liverpool in the summer of 2015 from Ringmahon Rangers, progressing through the youth ranks before establishing himself as a member of the first-team squad.
The now 26-year-old got his first taste of silverware in 2019 when he was named amongst the substitutes for the 2-0 Champions League final win against Tottenham Hotspur.
Another trophy followed that August in the form of the UEFA Super Cup before he made his competitive debut for the club in a 2-0 Carabao Cup victory against Milton Keynes Dons a month later.
He played twice more in that competition and also featured once in the FA Cup in 2019/20, a season that saw him pick up his first Premier League winners’ medal.
Kelleher made his Champions League bow in December 2020 in a 1-0 win against Ajax before, five days later, he marked his first league appearance with another clean sheet as the Reds defeated Wolves 4-0.
In the process, Kelleher became the youngest Liverpool goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet on their Premier League debut.
Another club record the Irishman can boast is winning four penalty shoot-outs, more than any other keeper for the Reds.
The most memorable of those came in 2022, when he scored the decisive spot-kick in the Carabao Cup final against Chelsea.
Two years later, Kelleher and Liverpool – who also celebrated FA Cup glory in 2022 – beat the Blues again to lift the Carabao Cup at Wembley with a 1-0 win after extra-time.
(IANS)
