Wednesday, April 26, 2023

License to midfield - Trent Alexander-Arnold's new love affair



I still remember when Jurgen Klopp took charge of Liverpool several years ago, he made changes to the team that many managers in the past failed to do, which was to make the team great again by bagging some significant silverware, including ending the 30-year wait to get their hands on the English Premier League trophy. 


The achievements were made possible after the German-born finally bought players capable of winning games, ultimately possessing a champions mentality, displaying top draw performances week in, week out, relentlessly!


I even remember blogging about Liverpool's new-look midfield when they paid a good amount of money to bring in players such as Fabinho, Keita and Shaqiri to make sure the players in the centre and flanks were a force to be reckoned with, mainly serving as back-ups for the forwards. 


From the new-look midfield era, Liverpool is slowly becoming the old-age midfield. It's a fact, the intensity, hunger, and winning mentality have been very bad, and it's no surprise their form has been rock-bottom despite still being 7th on the table. 


Many say the departure of Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich was a curse that Liverpool should not have welcomed at a time when they were close to winning not the treble but the quadruple the season before, but only went on to win the FA Cup and Caraboa Cup. 


Well, it's not like they didn't win anything. Two is better than none, but maybe winning the Champions League and becoming Premier League champions for the second time under Klopp would have been more significant. 


So, when Mane left, Liverpool bought Uruguayan forward Darwin Nunez from Benfica for a record 75mil euro. The only reason I could possibly think of why would Klopp splash such a hefty amount on Nunez was that the forward had a great spell at Benfica when Liverpool squared against the Portuguese club in the Champions League last season. 


He scored several at both ties but as for his time so far at Liverpool, I can say it started rather poorly, especially when he picked up his first red card in his debut match at Anfield against Crystal Palace. 


Since then, he's been a threat on the left, and Liverpool had another steal when they brought in Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven. Cody was flying in the World Cup. He's got energy, skills, strength and a spectacular finisher in front of goal! 


While Liverpool's forward line is looking ever-competitive, especially with the returns of Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz from injuries, the midfield and back-four remain a worry for now. But they might have just found the perfect solution to resolve the ageing midfield after Trent Alexander-Arnold was given the license to explore his new role as a defensive central midfielder just behind the likes of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho. 


TAA has been criticised one too many times for flopping in his right-back position. He was often second best when facing the likes of Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid), Mitoma (Brighton) and Martinelli (Arsenal). 


Defensively, he is not too bad but definitely below average considering we have other right-backs in the Premier League who are far better than him, namely Reccee James, Aaron Wan-Bissaka or even Luke Shaw. 


Trent, who played a key part in Liverpool securing a last-minute equaliser against Arsenal a few weeks ago, delivered a sumptuous cross after bursting through the midfield, nutmegging Zinchenko before putting it on the plate for Firmino to head in to make it 2-2. 


That was when the Trent-midfield love affair started. Since then, Klopp gambled and fielded Trent just behind the two central midfielders in the previous two matches against Leeds United and Nottingham Forest. 


Guess what, Liverpool emerged victorious in both, hitting Leeds for 6-1 and narrowly cruised past Nottingham 3-2 at Anfield. Unsurprisingly, Trent was influential and played an integral part in the wins, assisting three goals! That's more than what he has achieved since the start of the season. 


I have always said this. Trent is the future of Liverpool. He has what it takes to be a Liverpool legend and this new role that he has taken on actually isn't really new after all because when in the academy, he played more of a holding midfielder. 


Well, does that mean Liverpool doesn't have to spend in the next transfer window? Absolutely not! The recruiting process must happen considering the squad is ageing and we can expect quite a number of outgoing players when the season ends. 


Naby Keita, Oxlade Chamberlain are some wantaway players in the team. And the news about Roberto Firmino, who won't extend his stay at Anfield is heartbreaking! Bobby was among the best and he's made some memorable moments that we can remember for a very long time. 


Just like Mane, when that happens, it's going to be truly emotional.