Liverpool Sticks To Alexis Mac Allister Plan, With A Summer Hint Pointing To An Alternative.
Not only Liverpool, but also Argentina has deployed Alexis Mac Allister as a defensive midfielder recently. He was assigned to this deeper role alongside Enzo Fernandez and Rodrigo De Paul in a World Cup qualifier against Paraguay, and the media in his home country were duly impressed by his performance. After the victory, he told reporters, “I played somewhat similarly to how I do at the club; it’s a new position, but I feel very comfortable. (Lionel) Scaloni instructs me to maintain the team’s balance, handle the transitions, and take care of my defensive duties when I venture forward.”
Although the 24-year-old feels comfortable in this role, he acknowledges that his transition to a deeper position is not without its imperfections. He stated, “I like it. I’ve said many times that it’s easy to say, ‘It’s not my natural position, and I’m doing my best,’ but it’s not that simple. Jurgen Klopp is using me in that role, providing his support, and I’m giving my best. I believe I’ve improved defensively in recent years, and I think it’s a role I can perform well. So, I’m confident, and I appreciate the support from my teammates and the coaching staff. That’s the most important thing.”
Despite his gradual shift to a holding midfielder position, Liverpool fans, while understanding the circumstances, are not entirely convinced. The prevailing opinion is that Mac Allister is not being used to his full potential in a deeper role that doesn’t naturally suit him, and Reds supporters are eager to see him play further up the field.
However, with limited ready and available alternatives, the former Brighton player ended up with a less favorable situation. As a result, for the time being, he finds himself in a position that doesn’t quite suit his abilities.
But should the Liverpool manager reconsider an experiment from the preseason to allow the £35 million man to play further forward? Only in Liverpool’s final preseason friendly against SV Darmstadt 98 did Klopp first deploy Mac Allister as Liverpool’s number six. While he has played in that role for seven of the club’s eight Premier League fixtures this season, he had spent most of the summer impressing in his preferred advanced role.
In Singapore, Curtis Jones was asked to play deeper in the 4-0 victory over Leicester City and the 4-3 defeat to Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, before that, Trent Alexander-Arnold filled the role against Karlsruher SC and SpVgg Greuther Furth, with teenager Conor Bradley starting at right-back after an impressive season on loan at Bolton Wanderers.
If the Northern Ireland international had not suffered a stress fracture in the back, which sidelined him for several months, who knows if he would have done enough to retain the right-back position at the start of the season and enable Alexander-Arnold to continue in midfield. It did seem like a possibility after two promising performances in Germany, even though Klopp later expressed his desire for his newly-appointed vice-captain to return to a defensive role.
“In late July,” Klopp told reporters, “after we placed him in this adaptable role at the end of last season, everyone recommended that he should play exclusively in midfield without explaining why. It’s a completely different position from the one he occupied last season or for the English national team, as it’s a holding position. There’s much more organization required.
“Trent can fulfill the role, but it depends on who plays on his left and right. We genuinely believed it was a crucial and positive move to explore this during the preseason. We still want to test Trent as a right-back again and then decide how to start the season.”
As expected, Alexander-Arnold has continued to play as a right-back since then, albeit in a versatile role for Liverpool. The tactical adjustments have seen him shift to both central midfield and center-back positions, as well as occasionally playing in a wide position.
Alexander-Arnold did start as a right-back in England’s friendly against Australia last night. Nevertheless, four months ago, after one of his international appearances in midfield, Southgate commented on the Liverpool player: “He demonstrated precisely what we believe he is capable of and offers us a distinct dimension compared to our other midfield players.”
Considering Mac Allister’s challenges as a number six, it raises the question: Should Alexander-Arnold be relocated to midfield?”
In the short run, there’s a case for it. Joe Gomez has had a strong start to the season at right-back, and one could argue that fielding him in defense alongside Alexander-Arnold as a number six and Mac Allister as a number eight might seem more comfortable, at least on paper.