Everything’s the Best: Mid-Summer Day’s Check-In
· Yahoo Sports
In a little over twelve hours, football’s biggest event will wrap-up leaving most of the world in a minor hangover, longing for the next for years to breeze by. Which means that we will finally get to re-focus our collective angst and energy to club football and, in particular, watching Liverpool’s Reds line up for another expectation-laden campaign.
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It’s already been a busy off-season for Liverpool Football Club, having jettisoned head coach (and Premier League winner), Arne Slot for former Bournemouth gaffer, Andoni Iraola. The Spaniard has, in turn, begun preparations for the upcoming season in earnest, with many of the Reds – save those who participated in the World Cup – already making appearances on the club’s socials marking the return to training.
This week, Liverpool also announced the extension of arguably last season’s best player, midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai. Which is placed next to Liverpool’s summer signing of Victor Munoz, as well as the welcoming of January signing Jeremy Jacquet, whose transfer from Rennes included a loan back to the French club for the remainder of the season.
It’s been a quiet transfer window thus far, with the – thus far – failed pursuit of Yan Diomande being perhaps the splashiest bit of news. Though, can’t say it’s too big of a swing as it looks like, to date, even PSG are going to miss out with RB Leipzig wanting to hold out for a massive pay day. The club’s decision to draw a bright line in the sand, while unpopular, looks to have been the right call with more time having lapsed.
But questions abound when it comes to the depth of the squad. Let’s take a look at the current composition of the team as it currently stands.
Defense and GoalkeeperLiverpool lost Ibrahima Konate on a free transfer to Real Madrid. But the Reds are also welcoming Jacquet as well as Giovanni Leoni, who is returning from a devastating injury. The club also still have Joe Gomez on the books, leaving them at essentially the same level of depth as last season. On top of that, there have been rumors that Liverpool will be activating the buy-back clause on Jarell Quansah, which would be a shrewd move given how successful his year in the Bundesliga+England’s run in the World Cup have been. His positional flexibility, along with Gomez’s, are also pluses when considering a long season with multiple competitions.
At fullback, Liverpool recalled Kostas Tsimikas to provide a rotational option for Milos Kerkez on the left side. On the right, Liverpool will be hoping that a fully healed Conor Bradley will eventually lock down that spot, but with only Jeremie Frimpong on the books at right-back, the club will need to be creative. Again, Joe Gomez can fill in capably at that spot and if the Reds do recall Quansah, there’d be reason to believe that the club could have decent depth at that spot. Of course, all of this depends on how Iraola prefers to use his fullbacks, so a lot of question marks abound.
In terms of goalkeeper, there were whispers that Alisson Becker may be looking to find a new team. But with the tournament wrapping and no firm rumors yet, it looks like there’s still some hope that Liverpool’s best keeper in a generation might be sticking around. Behind him, there’s still Giorgio Mamardashvili who Iraola will hope to improve upon from last year. While the Georgian wasn’t a disaster by any stretch, the lack of familiarity between the backline and the new keeper was painfully obvious and lead to some awkward moments. His reputation as a decent shot stopper, though, was displayed and so the priority must be in improving his organization skills and his distribution.
MidfieldWith the aforementioned extension for Dominik Szoboszlai, the club have answered perhaps the most important question in terms of retention. But the midfield is still sorely in need of at least one more body and, to my mind, a player more suited to the defensive side of the ball. It is possible that the player already exists? Perhaps: the club could conceivably run a double pivot with two of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Curtis Jones, and Dominik Szoboszlai, depending on the opposition.
If Iraola runs a formation with 5 in the midfield, then that would mean three of Cody Gakpo, Florian Wirtz, Harvey Elliott, Jones, Szoboszlai, Munoz and Frimpong. There’s some rotation available in the wings, but it’s a pretty short bench when you consider the number of matches on offer. Liverpool will need to bring at least one more central midfielder and one player, preferably on the right, to provide width.
ForwardsGiven that Iraola prefers to line up with just a solo striker, the needs in attack are slightly less pressing than when looking at a 4-3-3 base. That being said, with Hugo Ekitike out, the pressure will be on Alexander Isak to carry the goalscoring load and to be the focal point of the Reds’ attack. There will be a lot of reason for caution on that front, but the Swedish striker’s performances this summer should give Liverpool fans a lot to be optimistic about.
The major questions, really, will be how Iraola opts to line up on the wings (and in the 10) in order to get the most out of Isak. On the left, Gakpo and Wirtz will likely be the most direct competition, with new signing Munoz likely to be used in rotation. Similarly, the 10 role will be a bit of difficult one with Wirtz, Szoboszlai, and perhaps either Elliott or Jones looking to play in that spot.
The right side, though, is where things get dicey. I can imagine putting a world where Szoboszlai and Elliott can find some time there depending on the opponent, but the only real player on the books to carry that space is Jeremie Frimpong. With Mohamed Salah moving on, there’s a deep need for Liverpool to fill a giant void and, thus far, the club haven’t been able to do that.
What Comes NextI haven’t been tracking the transfer rumors as closely given the tournament, but with things winding down, one would expect that some moves to open up. It may be a difficult market, though, given that it looks like the biggest transfer domino – Yan Diomande – has yet to move.
It looks pretty clear, though, that Liverpool need at least one player in midfield and one wide player for the right side before the window closes. Here’s hoping the club sort out these moves because we kick-off in approximately one month.