A reunion with Fernando and co

Liverpool's Academy starlets are making many friends during their stay in Qatar for the prestigious Al-Kass Cup and they were boosted by the arrival of a couple of familiar faces.

The U18s are competing alongside the likes of Inter Milan, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain and have thoroughly enjoyed their time in Qatar so far.

Academy director Frank McParland and the squad met up with former Liverpool players Jim Magilton and Fernando Morientes who paid a visit to the team hotel.

Former Spain international Morientes arrived at Anfield when McParland was in his former role as chief scout. He is now coaching Real Madrid U17s.

Magilton was captain of Liverpool reserves in the mid 1980s under Phil Thompson and came through the youth ranks at the club when he arrived from Northern Ireland.

He played in the reserve side alongside the likes of Steve McManaman and first-team coach Mike Marsh. Due to the rich competition for places he never made a senior appearance in a red shirt but he did go on to have a great career - playing over 500 league games for the likes of Ipswich Town, Southampton, Sheffield Wednesday, Oxford as well as picking up 52 caps for Northern Ireland.

Although the youth system at Anfield these days is very different to Magilton's day, the Irishman has suitably been impressed by the brilliant work being carried out by the Academy.

Magilton is working in Qatar in a role as a pundit alongside the likes of former Manchester City ace Nicky Summerbee and former Sunderland and England U21 defender Chris Makin.

McParland said: "It's great to see these lads out here and they have been very supportive to us and the work we are doing.

"Jim captained our reserve team for a good few years and was very keen to see some of the work that we do in Kirkby.

"This is a fantastic experience for our youngsters. The Al Kass Cup has brought together some fantastic teams from all over the world and it is a real privilege and a pleasure for us to be over here."

Steve Cooper's U18s face Inter Milan in the Al-Kass Cup quater-final on Friday evening. The game kicks-off at 4pm GMT.

The final is set to be held on Thursday, February 7. PSG were crowned the inaugural champions in 2012 after beating Juventus on penalties.

Stay logged on to Liverpoolfc.com for more details throughout the tournament, and follow the club's Arabic Twitter account - @LFC_Arabic - for regular updates.