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MARTIN KEOWN: Diogo Jota has made Liverpool’s three forwards even better … if he settles for a bench spot against Manchester City he may still be Jurgen Klopp’s ace up his sleeve
- It is not only Roberto Firmino under the pressure of the hot form of Diogo Jota
- If the Portuguese is on the bench against Manchester City, he will continue to be used well
- He has made the best three forwards even better and City must be careful with him
I remember in my youth watching David Fairclough for Liverpool, or ‘Supersub’, as he was known. When they took him out of the bank, you would think he was going to score. He was like an ace up his sleeve.
Diogo Jota joined Liverpool in the summer knowing he would not make this team. Jurgen Klopp’s three forwards seemed set in stone. But it is Jota’s credit that he is now pushing for a place.
He has scored goal after goal and that endangers everyone’s place, not just Roberto Firmino’s.
Diogo Jota has impressed Jurgen Klopp and is pushing hard for a starting position at Liverpool
Klopp was questioned about Firmino after Jota’s hat-trick at Atalanta and seemed to suggest that the Brazilian will play Manchester City.
If Jota is on the bench, Liverpool having him ready to be presented in the way he is is a great weapon.
Klopp and his team did their homework with the Portugal forward. At Wolves, Adama Traore and Raúl Jiménez seemed to attract most of the attention, but Klopp chose 23-year-old Jota.
He may not always have started with Nuno Espirito Santo, but when asked, he acted.
It was combined to a deadly effect with Mo Salah (left) and Sadio Mane (right) against Atalanta.
He’s someone who knows how to push, and since 2018 no Premier League player has forced more rivals to draw red cards than Jota.
That’s partly down to his rigorous pressure, with Everton’s Phil Jagielka and Newcastle’s DeAndre Yedlin among those he pressed before being attacked.
One guy who knows all about Jota is City goalkeeper Ederson, who was sent off for fouling in their 3-2 loss at Molineux last December.
Jota seems to have made the best three strikers in English football even better. That’s very good news for Klopp and bad news for the Premier League defenses.
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