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Compared to other Liverpool teams from the Premier League era, the current crop is blessed with many highly talented players, most of whom are indispensable to the team.
However, there are two players who seem to be the most comprehensive of how the team wants to play. And despite being an idea that would have seemed ridiculous to any top team, even just five years ago, these key men are the wingers.
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson have collectively missed just one minute of the Reds’ nine games in the Premier League and Europe so far this season. It’s reasonable to assume that Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk would have appeared as often if not for their injury issues, but even if they had, they wouldn’t have had to cover as much ground as the wingers.
It’s an incredibly demanding position these days, and Trent and ‘Robbo’ are great at meeting the needs of the modern game of defense. But they will surely need a break soon at some point. After all, Robertson played the second most minutes for the Reds in all competitions last season as well, behind Van Dijk, and then Mohamed Salah came in third ahead of Alexander-Arnold in fourth.
However, Jürgen Klopp hasn’t had many opportunities to rest them recently, and Robertson in particular. Kostas Tsimikas signed from Olympiacos in the summer to cover for the Scotsman, but has not been on the team of the match day since his debut against Lincoln City due to injury (although he returned to training at Melwood today).
On the other side of defense, Neco Williams has been with the squad for six of the last seven league and European games, but hasn’t come off the bench in any of them. It’s hard not to wonder if the 7-2 loss at Aston Villa hurt his chances to play in the following games even though he didn’t show up.
After the most embarrassing defeat of his reign at Liverpool, Klopp may have felt it was more important to have as many of his best players on the side as possible in order to get the team back on track, and subsequent injuries on defense did not. they will have taken place. made him more likely to include a relative newbie.
With Manchester City lurking in a crucial league game next weekend, Klopp must decide whether the Champions League match with Atalanta is the time to give any of his top full-backs a break from their hectic schedules. While there is an international hiatus after City’s game, given that their two nations have three games, Alexander-Arnold and Robertson can also be heavily involved during those two weeks.
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Therefore, Klopp may decide to rest one or even both in Italy on Tuesday night. A win would bring Liverpool very close to qualifying for the round of 16, but it is not essential. Even if the Reds lost, they would only be one point out of first place in Pool D after having played two of their three away games, and with the easiest yet to come. This match could offer a unique opportunity to give some key men a night off.
And Liverpool’s away record in the Champions League group stage in Klopp’s time suggests that a loss could easily happen no matter who’s playing anyway. The Reds have only won four of their 10 such games in the past four seasons, and none of the victories have been against a team from one of Europe’s major leagues. With Klopp, Liverpool drew with Sevilla and lost to Napoli (twice) and Paris-Saint Germain when facing a team from an elite league.
But they are all swings and roundabouts. A win tomorrow could give Alexander-Arnold and Robertson two European nights off later. However, Klopp needs to give them a break soon, as Liverpool are scheduled to play 12 games in the six weeks between the end of the next international break and the first weekend of 2021. The trip to Atalanta may offer their best chance during a lot of time. .
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