Liverpool fans got a first glimpse of what Hugo Ekitike has to offer for them next season.

The Reds concluded their pre-season tour of Asia with a 2-0 win over J1 League strugglers Yokohama F.

Marinos in a game that saw many players get more minutes in the tank compared to previous friendlies.

However, the biggest talking point of the day is that new signing Ekitike made his debut for the club, with the Frenchman getting 45 minutes under his belt.

Liverpool vs Yokohama LIVE: £79m new boy Hugo Ekitike makes his Liverpool debut as Premier League champions look to impress in Japan despite tsunami threat	Liverpool’s predicted XI vs Yokohama Marinos as youngster aims to impress again while Hugo Ekitike makes debut	Liverpool line-ups for Yokohama as Hugo Ekitike makes debut and Alexis Mac Allister decision made

He may not have scored but he was certainly involved a fair bit in the game, with Liverpool fans giving their early verdicts on how they think he will get on at Anfield next season.

Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images

The 23-year-old started from the off against Yokohama Marinos, a surprising decision considering that he has not had too many training sessions to sink his teeth into since arriving a week ago.

Saying this, the striker looked sharp and showed some signs of promise, with Reds fans largely impressed by what he had to offer.

One fan wrote on X: “Ekitike’s movement off the ball is brilliant,” while another was excited by his link-up play, writing: “Salah to Ekitike wow… I’m moved already.”

A third fan even compared him to Liverpool cult hero Roberto Firmino, putting: “Ekitike looking Bobby-like already.”

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Another fan also aimed a subtle dig towards Darwin Nunez after saying: “Ekitike has moved me already even with this pitch, just nice seeing a striker actually move with a brain.”

A fifth supporter added: “Ekitike is just a very good all-round footballer isn’t he?

Fluid and dropping deeper to connect play.”

Another wrote: “I liked what I have seen from Ekitike so far.

He is demonstrating his qualities and showing how well he fits at Liverpool, his technique, speed, awareness, work rate, tenacity, looking forward to seeing more of him.”

A seventh echoed that by writing: “Ekitike looked great in that first half, he’s much quicker than I thought he would be; especially for such a tall guy.”

A final fan summed his 45 minutes up quite nicely by putting: “Promising debut, showed good energy.”

One thing that Ekitike certainly showed in his short spell on the pitch is that he is more than just a goalscorer, as he was very keen to drop deep and link-up the play.

The Frenchman, as that one supporter rightly pointed out, showed similarities to Firmino, with the 23-year-old producing some nice flicks and tricks.

He also demonstrated good pace and a willingness to chase lost causes, something that will make him very popular among Liverpool fans.

Of course, judging him on 45 minutes is certainly harsh, but overall, he looks like he will be a good addition to the squad.
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