Trent Alexander-Arnold had a curious Liverpool pre-season. It might even have created a problem that Jürgen Klopp would certainly not have been anticipating.
Liverpool begin their 2023/24 Premier League campaign at Chelsea this weekend and their supporters are unsure who will start or what line-up the team will start with. The days when Jurgen Klopp’s teachers and students mainly chose each other and played in a 4-3-3 pattern year after year are long gone.
By far the biggest dilemma has been the composition and shape of the Reds’ midfield. But whether he starts at home or plays as a right-back – both of which were seen in pre-season – Trent Alexander-Arnold will be key to Liverpool’s hopes of success in west London.
The 24-year-old finished 2022/23 in some of the best form of his already illustrious career. In his first 37 appearances of the campaign in all competitions, Alexander-Arnold provided just three assists, a significant drop when he had set up 18 goals the season before. But then came the change.
Liverpool switched to a 3-2-2-3 shape when in possession for its final 10 matches, with its number 66 moving inside into effectively a midfield role. He took advantage to deliver seven assists (and a free-kick goal at Leicester).
His performance level was so good that he has since started games as an out-and-out midfielder, both for England and far more importantly Liverpool. By playing more centrally, Alexander-Arnold has more touches of the ball and that inevitably increases his opportunities to hurt opposition defenses.
The numbers bear this out, and not just through the random nature of assists (which are determined by the finishing of teammates). Comparing Alexander-Arnold’s opening 27 league games and his final 10 shows that he raised his key passes by 0.20 per 90 minutes, his expected assists by 0.22 and his chance quality went from a very strong 0.16 xA per chance created to an incredible 0.24. Whatever other issues exist within Liverpool’s midfield — and there remain several — getting a greater creative output from Alexander-Arnold is not one of them.
Or at least that’s what the end of 2022/23 looks like. Recent friendlies have disturbed the waters. Alexander-Arnold started his first two games in central midfield, providing an assist when Luis Díaz scored against Greuther Fürth.
However, it was more thanks to Colombia’s footwork, as he dribbled into the box and dribbled past a couple of defenders before slamming the net. Alexander-Arnold’s passing was routine, and the home team’s hero created only one more chance in the game, and none against Karlsruher.
Returning to the right-back position, with the ability to move up the midfield, Alexander-Arnold has not played more effectively in the last 3 matches. He started games against Leicester, Bayern Munich and Darmstadt, playing more minutes with each passing game, but his key passing numbers were one, zero and one respectively.
With 271 minutes played, the total of 4 chances that the England player created was 1.33 to 90. While this is a small sample taken from non-competitive games, it is a lower average than he has shown in any Premier League campaign since becoming a Premier League player. regular player in the first team.
Alexandre-Arnold is. Mohamed Salah had the same amount of time on the pitch and created nearly four times as many chances (15), racking up seven assists. More concerning in terms of placement, Andy Robertson made 7 crucial passes (2.45 out of 90) while Kostas Tsimikas provided 6 (2.80).
However, perhaps, with the ability to recruit Moisés Caicedo, Liverpool could see a change. After all, with an elite midfield base around him rather than a makeshift one, Alexander-Arnold could soon be back to his best. You would never think that Alexander-Arnold would be Liverpool’s least creative full-back this summer, but that’s what happened. A little sloppiness while building up fitness is perfectly acceptable, but if that continues throughout the season, Klopp could have another problem in midfield.
