How Deep Is Liverpool’s Squad? | OneFootball

By Imraan Adam

With the transfer window almost closed and Liverpool fans facing another window of very little activity I wanted to take a deep dive and look at why apart from Federico Chiesa, Liverpool have chosen not to strengthen their squad this season.

Now for the purpose of being fair, I’m not writing this with any FSG agenda, I myself am neither FSG in or out. I admit they’re not the perfect owners but they have also done a lot of good for the club. However for this article I just wanted to look at the squad, the strengths and weaknesses and any glaring holes. So without further ado let’s get right into it.

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Goalkeeper

It is widely known that Liverpool probably have two of the best keepers in the league at their disposal in Alisson Becker and Caoimhin Kelleher. However, with Vitezslav Jaros making his first team debut earlier this season against Crystal Palace and with Liverpool having high hopes for the young Czech keeper the goalkeeping department is one that is very secure and that is without mentioning Giorgi Mamardashvili who will be coming from Valencia next season, Liverpool has real quality and real option when it comes to the men between the posts.

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Right Back

Now this is one position that is surrounded by controversy mainly because we’re still unaware of what is happening with Trent Alexander Arnold’s contract. The scouse right-back has been the only right back the club have needed in the last 8 years and while others have been brought in they’ve only served a supporting role as we have watched Alexander Arnold develop and blossom into one of the best right backs in the world. Assuming Liverpool can retain Alexander Arnold’s services beyond the end of this season we are actually in a pretty healthy position for right back. Connor Bradley is proving to be a more than adequate understudy to Trent Alexander Arnold and we all know what Joe Gomez can bring to the table when he fills in so again Liverpool are well stocked in the right-back department.

Centre Back

Again with centre back, a lot depends on whether Virgil Van Dijk extends his contract beyond this summer but if the rumours are to be believed then we are expecting the Liverpool captain to still be around next season and with Ibrahima Konate alongside him, the pair have formed a formidable and solid partnership this season and at times have looked unbeatable. Konate started the season on the bench but after the first half against Ipswich on the opening day, Konate was thrown in because Arne Slot didn’t like the fact that Jarell Quansah wasn’t enough of his duels and since then Konate hasn’t looked back. No doubt that Quansah lost a lot of confidence after that opening weekend but his recent performances have suggested that he’s on the mend and he has a lot to offer to this Liverpool team. Then there is the ever-reliable Joe Gomez who we all knew is more than capable of just filling in. Gomez’s pace is a real attribute, especially at centre back and people often forget the year we won the Champions League it was Gomez who was partnering Van Dijk for the first half of the season when Liverpool looked like a rock at the back. Liverpool has four top quality centre backs, one of them being the best in the world and this idea that we need to buy another centre-back is a narrative that I don’t buy into, we have more than enough quality to see us through for the next two or three years in my opinion.

Left Back

So there’s no doubt that this season’s left-back has been an issue for us, Andy Robertson has had a difficult campaign up until now, in my opinion, he seems to have lost a yard of pace and he’s really struggling sometimes to get back in and cover. However, his understudy Kostas Tsimikas is prone to getting caught high up the pitch and sometimes forgetting his defensive responsibilities. Tsimikas likes to set up camp in the opposition half, which sometimes is brilliant but there are times when he does need to learn to tuck back in and think about what is behind him rather than what’s in front of him. Gomez again can do a job at left back but with him being right-footed his natural instinct is to cut back in on his right foot and this can sometimes slow down the attack. In my opinion, this is an area we could do with strengthening in the summer.

Defensive Midfield

Since Arne Slot came in he’s decided to operate with a double pivot in the midfield, one being a deep-lying playmaker and one that is allowed to get forward a bit more and support the attack from deep. Going into the new season we honestly didn’t know who would be operating in the number 6 role. Liverpool spent most of the summer flirting with Martin Zubimendi, trying to get the Spanish International to leave Real Sociedad for the Merseyside however when that deal fell through we were all left scratching our heads as to who Arne Slot would play there. Up stepped Ryan Gravenberch, who knew that the player who bought the season before as an attacking midfielder could do an exceptional job on the defensive side of the game. Gravenberch has been a revelation this season and is winning plaudits all over the world for his defensive performances. Alongside him Liverpool often goes with Alexis Mac Allister and his quality on the ball to be able to pick a pass is one of the major reasons why Liverpool has looked so good this season. As well as Mac Allister Curtis Jones has also been playing a deeper role and the scouser is enjoying his best season in a Red shirt not only in terms of his output but also his input on the game has also impressed massively. Liverpool’s game against Chelsea earlier this season was arguably Jones’s best match in a Liverpool shirt as he ran that midfield from start to finish. Arne Slot also has Wataru Endo who’s still a valuable member of the team and who I think has a big part to play from now until the end of the season. Every successful team need a destroyer in the midfield, a dog that will just go and win the ball and get the team moving again, that’s what Endo is and his ability to do this cannot be overlooked.

The Number 10

When it comes to number 10 position only one name is on everyone’s lips, Dominic Szoboszlai. The Hungarian international has been nothing short of brilliant for the Reds this season, not just on the ball but off of it as well. Szoboszlai is often the player that starts the press and his ability on the ball has improved a lot as the season has gone on. In the early weeks, his decision-making was called into question a number of times but more recently Szoboszlai’s ability to release the ball at the most opportune moment is becoming a real weapon for the Reds and one that will be valuable as Liverpool continues to fight on all four fronts. Behind him is Harvey Elliot who’s had wretched luck this season, an ankle injury in September forced him to miss the next two months and by the time he was able to play Szoboszlai had made that position his own. Elliot has had to be patient, however, in recent weeks he’s beginning to be used more and more by Arne Slot and is having more and more of an influence on the game. Again the number 10 role isn’t really a position that Liverpool needs to worry about and in all fairness, every midfielder apart from Endo could in theory do a job in the number 10 so we are really well stocked in that department.

Right Wing

When you talk about Liverpool’s right winger only one name comes to mind, Mo Salah. The Egyptian King seems to be getting better with age but even by his very high standards this season has been off the charts for him. He’s now on 42 goal involvements for the season and when you consider that’s more than anyone in Europe’s top 5 leagues the urge for him to sign a new deal has never been higher. Salah is Liverpool’s man on the right and has been for more than half a decade. He really has made the right-hand side of Anfield his own. It’s his domain, his home and where he is King and defenders are forced to bow in aw to the great man. Yet Liverpool still decided to go out and get the fans even more excited about that right-wing position by buying Federico Chiesa from Juventus. Now it’s taking Chiesa a while to settle in at Liverpool, he’s had countless injury setbacks and at times we were all wondering whether he would actually make it at Liverpool. In recent games, he really has found his form, looking every bit of a threat that made Liverpool fans lick their lips with excitement when he signed in the summer. Right wing is a position that Liverpool has sorted and personally I’m confident that Salah will extend his contract so honestly I don’t think we need to worry about the right wing.

Left Wing

When it comes to left wing Liverpool have rotated this season between Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo. Diaz started the season on fire but recently Gakpo has shown the world what he can do when he’s coming in off the left. There isn’t too much I need to say about the left wing, they are two quality players with unique skill sets that offer Liverpool something different from the left. Liverpool has this position boxed off.

Centre Forward

Now in my opinion this is a position Liverpool needs to strengthen in the summer. I love Darwin Nunez and all the sticks he gets online are unfair but the fact is as a Liverpool number 9 you are judged by putting the ball into the net and with only 6 goals to his name at the end of January this is just simply not good enough, especially considering the chances he has been missing. Diogo Jota is arguably Liverpool’s best finisher but the guy is made of glass. As much as we all love him the fact is if you get more than eight games in a row out of him without him breaking down then he’s on a good run. The thing is about Jota he’s missing large portions of the season, you cannot hang your hat on him and depend on him in the title race. Out of the two, I would let Nunez go, and keep Jota as an understudy, maybe with fewer minutes he’d be injured less but I definitely think Liverpool needs a centre forward in the summer.

Redmen Reacts

On the whole, I think the Liverpool squad is very healthy and despite what most of our fans say we’ve actually got the best squad in the league and definitely the most complete. There are always going to be holes in every squad, Manchester City got to 100 points in the Premier League with Fabian Delph at left back. My point is no squad or team is perfect and we as fans always want a new shiny toy to play with. However the lack of signings doesn’t indicate a lack of ambition, sometimes you just have to be realistic and admit that you can’t upgrade your squad. Yes, there are one or two holes that Liverpool needs to address in the summer but on the whole, this is the best Liverpool squad in terms of numbers and quality that I’ve ever seen and I don’t think it needs major surgery, not yet anyway. I don’t want to talk about us doing the quad because it’s still too early and unlike in previous years I don’t want to get my hopes up too soon but one thing I’ll say is if we were ever going to do it the squad we have this season probably has the best chance ever and I really believe we are in for a very exciting end of the season.