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It’s been said so many times that it should probably be the catchphrase that accompanies this Premier League season. A bit like Friends always started their episodes with ‘The One Where …’, which probably seemed like a very good idea at the time, but not so much after 236 of them. The same could probably be said for Friends as a television show in general.
But let’s go back to the 2020/21 Premier League, or where everything is different. Because it really is. Not only because Liverpool lost 7-2 at Aston Villa, they played in front of no fans, just cloth at Anfield, and lost Thiago Alcantara in a storage box when they moved him from Melwood to Kirkby. It’s different because the schedule is different, the training protocols are different, the world is different.
You’re probably bored of hearing it now. I know who I am. After the glimmers of hope offered in recent weeks around vaccines and the entry of stadium fans (in small numbers and only in certain areas), it becomes clear that everything that is happening now from a sporting perspective is passenger. This will probably not be the ‘new normal’, but rather something we must endure until normality returns. Like the annoying, snot-laden boy in the back of his mother’s Volkswagen Beetle, ‘are we there yet?’ it will now be the lingering cry as we head towards football as we remember it.
But there is still a real football season to play. This makes it difficult to actually invest. Last week, I wrote about what the campaign would look like that actually had an asterisk next to it. This will be even more pertinent if August 2021 brings us football as we remember it. It is the season of transience, which makes it difficult to really invest in what is happening in the field. The ultimate goal is simply to ensure that these players, from all clubs, not just Liverpool, navigate the season safely and do not succumb to any lasting damage due to the pressures the calendar places on them (a reminder: EURO 2020 and the Copa América 2021 will also be held next summer). Victories and trophies, whoever they are awarded to, will be an added bonus.
It’s not that simplistic for Klopp or, more specifically, for his squad. Because everything make count this season. Those in power at Anfield will not make hasty judgments about the players if they fight, especially in this kind of environment. But this is a relentless campaign, where there are two conflicting ideologies: a) Klopp’s desire to develop and b) the impossibility of gradual development over the course of a season. There is no real opportunity for integration, there is no adequate opportunity for establishment. With abundant games and injuries, players will only be used when necessary.
The likes of Andy Robertson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabinho simply could not have grown on training ground without the time and space they were given when they first joined. All three (if they fit together) would have been used much faster and much more frequently if this season had been the first. Diogo Jota has been a revelation, joining the club right away, but he really hasn’t had a choice. Kostas Tsimikas started in the Champions League in the middle of the week and will likely present more in the coming weeks. Thiago, when in shape, is one of the most likely starters.
But it also means those who still They need time, whether it’s to recover from injuries, understand the team’s style of play, or adjust to training schedules, they don’t get that much. Takumi Minamino is one of those players; He may have remained on the bench with Divock Origi preferred against Atalanta, but the Belgian’s latest languid outing means it should be Minamino’s time soon, whether the clock agrees or not. Naby Keita managed 53 minutes against Leicester City and is now back to where he has been for much of his Liverpool career. Neco Williams needs guidance and patience, but instead is needed for the next few weeks in some capacity until Trent Alexander-Arnold returns; His namesake Rhys is not going through the rite of passage for many center-backs, instead meeting a new defensive partner every two weeks.
Tiers is a buzzword in the UK now, but Klopp’s teams have been unofficially ranked in recent years in terms of minutes played. Does it look like this:
Level 1: Players who play as many minutes as possible, depending on physical condition. Typically this equates to around 3,000 minutes across all competitions and includes players like Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Gini Wijnaldum, Robertson, Alexander-Arnold, and the top three.
Level 2: Players tested in Liverpool and who can be sure to be used in most games. The minutes range from 1,500 to 3,000 minutes. The type of players at this level include James Milner, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Xherdan Shaqiri, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez.
Level 3: Players who still need specific circumstances to be pushed to the sides, usually around fitness or development. Typically they are played between 500 and 1,500 minutes and can include Minamino, Tsimikas, Adrian, Origi, Naby Keita, and Curtis Jones. In past seasons, Adam Lallana and Daniel Sturridge would have been considered here as well.
Level 4: Youth who are given minutes when they can and are needed. Harvey Elliott, the Williams duo, Billy Koumetio, Leighton Clarkson
Players can go up and down in these levels. Curtis Jones is rapidly moving into that second tier of being a reliable midfield option in any game. Jordan Henderson and Fabinho’s injury issues mean they would be at Level 1, but they will find themselves playing more minutes similar to Level 2. Keita could also be a Level 2, but his ailments see him more at home lower down. Similarly, players can go down, with Origi much lower than in 2019/20.
This is not scientific, but it is true when you look at how the team is divided. But this season brings a problem: Level 3 and even Level 4 don’t really exist at the moment. It’s a two-tier system: either you are a regular starter, or you are someone who will replace the regular starter when needed. It’s relentless and unforgiving, and it essentially means that there will be some harsh realities and even harsher truths.
It means that what has become a carefully designed squad should now be seen in slightly different ways: who is capable of entering Level 3 and Level 4 at Level 2, and what happens if they are not? What if, at the end of the campaign, it is clear that certain players are not ready to be at those top two levels, and they probably never will be? Origi is an obvious candidate, and in truth there seems to be acceptance at Anfield, this will be his last season, but similar questions could be asked of Minamino, Keita, Shaqiri and others.
This provides a dilemma for Klopp and the club in the future. These players are good enough to make the Liverpool squad, but it might be obvious that they won’t come with the club’s desired availability or playing minutes. they demand. And even though football will return to normal, and the composition of the Liverpool team as well, it could become clearer who is still capable of making that leap and who could be relegated to being a secondary player for the rest of his time. at Anfield. That could lead to another busy summer while evaluating the team, aka… The one Michael Edwards gets to work with.
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