The noise from Liverpool’s recent dismal performance and the joy from many is perhaps an indication of just how powerful Anfield has become over the past decade.
It’s been 10 years since Jurgen Klopp took over the reins from Brendan Rodgers, who was the Reds’ manager before Arne Slott and ended in four consecutive defeats.
But Liverpool are vastly different from that long-forgotten iteration, with Slott having some of the best players in world football at his disposal. The 5-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League was another reminder that this is a team capable of winning all the big prizes.
However, some individuals have struggled and the team has struggled to find fluent form as a unit. One of the biggest culprits would be Alexis Mac Allister, whose graceful ability and determination in the engine room are crucial to the slot machine’s performance.
Liverpool’s Mac Allister’s form
Mac Allister is undoubtedly one of the best midfielders in the Premier League. Indeed, he is one of the most complete, most active and most original people.
However, he hasn’t been in full form this year, losing 57% of his ground battles in the league so far and making just one tackle per game, according to SofaScore.
The Argentine was virtually undropped during his first two years in a Liverpool shirt, but his place in the starting XI now looks more vulnerable and midweek’s win against Frankfurt underlined that, as he was left on the bench after playing just an hour against Manchester United.
Mac Allister’s form this season has been a concern, but he is an elite player and will be vital to Liverpool’s success. The 26-year-old has, in a sense, given us his own version of Thiago Alcantara in the slot. Thiago Alcantara’s career was cut short just before the Dutchman arrived. However, like Thiago, Liverpool seem to be finding ways to perform without their star player.
The tempo-setting and line-breaking maestro offered something unique to Liverpool’s engine room, which allowed them to evolve in later Klopp teams.
The problem, of course, is that the retired 34-year-old was barely healthy. Over four seasons on Merseyside, the Spanish star made just 98 appearances in all competitions.
However, his technical qualities, vision and awareness were abilities unlike anything else Liverpool had. In Mac Allister, the Reds have a stylistically similar midfielder, but there’s actually another man in the slot first team who could be a new version of Liverpool’s former superstar.
Liverpool’s new version of Thiago
In soccer, sometimes the timing isn’t right. Steven Gerrard narrowly missed out on the Klopp era, leaving for Los Angeles Galaxy just months before the German’s historic appointment.
Similarly, Thiago will prematurely retire from football at the end of the 2023/24 season, having only played one game that year due to an injury-induced slump. He was 33 years old.
He thus missed out on the dawn of the slot era and the Premier League title that would be within reach of Anfield just a year after his retirement.
Most farcical of all, the stylish Spaniard boasted a style of play that matched the calculated and calm build-up Liverpool have built since Klopp’s departure. Gone (at least last season) is the frenetic, out-of-control football that Slott’s predecessors emphasized and brought so much success to.
Thiago is one of the greatest technicians of his generation. He was supposed to be the linchpin of this version of Liverpool. However, there may be a successor in the slot in Curtis Jones.
Yes, that’s right. No, this argument does not center on the basis that Jones is on the same level as the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich sensations in their prime.
However, the Liverpool-born star shares certain qualities with his former team-mate, with both being among the most reliable players in the squad, with combative sides highlighted by their battle-on-ball attitude and defensive contribution with tough tackles.
Jones graduated from Liverpool’s academy and has been with his boyhood side ever since, playing a role under manager Klopp, but his slot tactics have enhanced his skill set, making him, as one Premier League analyst put it, “one of England’s most underrated players”.
Jones is an easy passer. He is smart in his decision-making and tactically disciplined. According to FBref, the Three Lions star ranks in the top 11% for assists, top 8% for goal-creating actions, top 2% for pass completion rate, top 12% for progressive passes and top 13% for progressive carries among midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues.
The actions that create the goal are part of the play that leads to the goal. These include, but are not limited to, passes, take-ons, and drawn fouls.
He has plenty of experience within this Liverpool squad and will be one of the club’s key figures after the likes of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk left in their penultimate season on Merseyside.
Most apps for Liverpool (current players) | ||
|---|---|---|
player | year | app |
mohamed salah | 33 | 413 |
andy robertson | 31 | 349 |
virgil van dijk | 34 | 331 |
Alison | 33 | 307 |
Joe Gomez | 28 | 245 |
curtis jones | twenty four | 190 |
Dates via Transfermarkt | ||
Thiago joined Liverpool for £20 million from Bayern Munich in 2020, but has had many ups and downs. There was no doubting his technical qualities, nor was there any doubting the fact that he could have been one of the greats in the division had his injuries worked out.
There’s no question he was a sublime element in the slot system, but Dutchman Jones has found a player with a similar style who can take the next step in his development and play a key deep role in furthering Liverpool’s ball-playing ability.
In Frankfurt, Jones had an incredible 139 touches on the ball, connecting plays and completing 122 of his 127 pass attempts. This is his strength and Slott has to let him be free from the start in order to go to the next level and take Liverpool with him.