'It's a springboard' - Former Liverpool man opens up on transfer decision to leave Arne Slot's side

After 16 years at Liverpool, where he became something of an academy star, Tyler Morton made the decision to leave the club for good. The 22-year-old left for Lyon in a deal worth up to €15 million (13m) earlier this month and so far he is loving life at the French side. Now, he has opened up on what drew him to the Ligue 1 outfit.

He told Foot Mercato: "It’s a great league, attractive, with high-quality players, and I know players here like Gomez Rodríguez and Jonathan Rowe, who are brilliant. It’s a springboard to play on such a stage. The passion in this league attracted me, and I’m passionate about football. It was quite easy for me to come here. As soon as the club showed interest in me, everyone close to me knew I was going to sign."

Morton added: "My integration went well; everyone is very friendly here. I knew a lot about Lyon, a little less about the city. The club is really impressive; I followed them a lot, especially last year. I was very excited to come here."

Morton was highly rated at Liverpool, but ultimately, he only made 14 appearances for the club. Following loan spells at Blackburn Rovers and Hull City, the defensive midfielder has made a bigger jump by making a permanent transfer. The England Under-21 international will hope that moving to Lyon can properly kickstart his senior career.

The Merseyside-born player will hope to get more game time for Lyon, starting with their home clash with Metz in Ligue 1. Morton's new team round off the month with a game against Marseille in the league on August 31.