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Thiago Alcantara will become Liverpool’s second signing in the transfer window after a € 30 million deal was finally agreed with Bayern Munich, The Athletic’s James Pearce reported.
MUNICH, GERMANY – AUGUST 08: Thiago Alcantara of Bayern Munich controls the ball during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 seconds matches between FC Bayern München and Chelsea FC at Allianz Arena on August 08, 2020 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by A. Hassenstein / Getty Images for FC Bayern)
The Spanish international will add even more depth to Jurgen Klopp’s plethora of midfield options.
Liverpool currently have seven midfielders on their roster, not including Harry Wilson and Marko Grujic, in the form of Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Curtis Jones, Naby Keïta and the injured Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Additional competition for places is always welcome, and Thiago’s proven quality will likely see the Spaniard immediately deploy to Klopp’s preferred starting lineup.
This is particularly beneficial for club captain Henderson.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 12: (THE SUN OUT, THE SUN ON SUNDAY OUT) Jordan Henderson captain of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Leeds United at Anfield on September 12, 2020 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Andrew Powell / Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Protecting Henderson
Liverpool’s irreplaceable captain had an outstanding 2019/20 campaign after collecting the Football Writers Association’s Player of the Year award en route to the club’s Premier League title win last season.
He made 30 appearances in PL last season scoring four goals and providing five total assists while helping the club achieve a record total of 99 points.
However, it was worrying that Henderson missed the last four games of the season due to a knee injury which, in fact, caused a huge drop in the Liverpool team’s performance levels.
Two of Klopp’s three losses last season occurred when Henderson was out of the team and it was revealing how dependent Liverpool has become on the influence of their captain following the skipper’s injury.
Liverpool’s acquisition of Thiago means Klopp has the option to effectively rotate Henderson to preserve fitness levels, while the former Barcelona manager’s ability to dictate the pace of possession will ease his teammates’ workload. team.
Henderson – which cost the club £ 20 million [BBC] In 2011, he turned 30 in June, meaning the England international will have to be handled with more care this season if the Reds are to avoid another injury than last season.
Adding another midfield option not only reduces the risk of injury in a key position, which is proven to be the most physically demanding area of the team, but increases competition for venues, eliminating any chance of complacency.
Thiago Alcantara of FC Bayern Munchen, Georginio Wijnaldum of Liverpool FC during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 match between Liverpool FC and Bayern Munich at Anfield on February 19, 2019 in Liverpool, UK (Photo by VI Images via Getty Images)
A variety of talents
Thiago offers Liverpool what seemed an impossible prospect at the start of the window of directly improving the starting lineup at the club, as Klopp will inherit a midfielder who is considered one of the best in the world in his particular position.
It also allows for greater depth from the bench with players like Wijnaldum, Milner, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Keita, all of whom have been given a more difficult task of breaking into the first team as a result of another arrival in midfield.
Tactically, it also raises the possibility of a form change from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1 in some matches.
Thiago gives Klopp greater flexibility in terms of team selection and squad management and allows Henderson to be the best possible version of himself.
That makes the reported £ 20m, plus an additional £ 5m linked to bonuses being spent on Thiago as another potential masterstroke from sporting director Michael Edwards in the transfer market.
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