Topic: Trent Alexander-Arnold

[Malaysian Kopite]

It is now rumoured Dom is out for a number of weeks-a hammer blow to our chances unless we can rejig.

Can we get Trent in midfield now, with Gomez behind him at right back (with Connor ready to when he can)?

People keep saying Trent can't do it but now is the time. Is the only time Klopp has left......

We'd probably do Endo - Macca - Jones,

[MonsLibpool]

It's time to move him to midfield. His application in defensive situations was poor against.  It was almost as if he wasn't arsed.

Maybe he's tired of playing at RB.

[Chris~]

I don't really get the idea that if he can't be trusted to defend at fullback he should/could be trusted in midfield, or is the assumption he'd try harder there?

[MonsLibpool]

I don't really get the idea that if he can't be trusted to defend at fullback he should/could be trusted in midfield, or is the assumption he'd try harder there?

A midfield is a unit and it's easier to cover his weaknesses. At fullback, he's isolated.

For example,  Gravenberch is still learning how to defend but it's less of an issue.

[Chris~]

A midfield is a unit and it's easier to cover his weaknesses. At fullback, he's isolated.

I mean, not massively when he's going to have a lot of responsibility for when to go in pressing situations or if he's at 6 isolated against runners. We've seen how bad it can get when players can't defend those situations. I don't think with the way we play we can really go with someone in midfield who we are moving as they aren't trusted to defend elsewhere

[Eeyore]

A midfield is a unit and it's easier to cover his weaknesses. At fullback, he's isolated.

For example,  Gravenberch is still learning how to defend but it's less of an issue.

Klopp sess him as a six though. That is probably the most difficult defensive position in our team.

[tubby]

Klopp sess him as a six though. That is probably the most difficult defensive position in our team.

But on the flip side, Mac Allister had never played as a lone 6 previously but he's been brilliant in that position, and Endo came in as an older player who's not competed at the top level before but still managed to do a very decent job there too.

A lot depends on the set up of the team.

[MonsLibpool]

I mean, not massively when he's going to have a lot of responsibility for when to go in pressing situations or if he's at 6 isolated against runners. We've seen how bad it can get when players can't defend those situations. I don't think with the way we play we can really go with someone in midfield who we are moving as they aren't trusted to defend elsewhere

Yeah. His position going forward is a big question mark because IMO Bradley is a more balanced given that he's solid going both ways.

I found Martinelli's comments after the game interesting.  He was talking about how their plan was to target our right hand side (for obvious reasons) because they knew they'd get joy there.

Also, having Ibou babysitting him in those situations is not sustainable as Ibou can only do so much. He's in his mid-twenties now and clarity is needed over his position.

[Eeyore]

But on the flip side, Mac Allister had never played as a lone 6 previously but he's been brilliant in that position, and Endo came in as an older player who's not competed at the top level before but still managed to do a very decent job there too.

A lot depends on the set up of the team.

I think you have to look at what you gain from playing him as a six and what you lose. I think you lose his ability to go and find space that the hybrid rule gives him whilst I don't think you actually gain anything by tying him down as a six.

[Eeyore]

Yeah. His position going forward is a big question mark because IMO Bradley is a more balanced given that he's solid going both ways.

I found Martinelli's comments after the game interesting.  He was talking about how their plan was to target our right hand side (for obvious reasons) because they knew they'd get joy there.

Also, having Ibou babysitting him in those situations is not sustainable as Ibou can only do so much. He's in his mid-twenties now and clarity is needed over his position.

What is the alternative though target the left-hand side where you have Virgil, Gomez, Jones dropping in and Diaz working his nuts off.

[Draex]

I mean, not massively when he's going to have a lot of responsibility for when to go in pressing situations or if he's at 6 isolated against runners. We've seen how bad it can get when players can't defend those situations. I don't think with the way we play we can really go with someone in midfield who we are moving as they aren't trusted to defend elsewhere

He also gets caught in posession a lot when pressured.

Trent is a bit of a headache for Klopp.

[MD1990]

It's time to move him to midfield. His application in defensive situations was poor against.  It was almost as if he wasn't arsed.

Maybe he's tired of playing at RB.

Rememeber Trents sprint where he hit the bar vs Arsenal away,
We dont see him do that running towards our goal.
His defensive attitude at times isnt great

[MonsLibpool]

What is the alternative though target the left-hand side where you have Virgil, Gomez, Jones dropping in and Diaz working his nuts off.

The alternative is to have a fullback that can defend 1v1 like like Bradley.

The game plan of most teams is to beat Trent 1v1 and suck Ibou wide which creates imbalances in our defence as it creates more space in the most dangerous part of the field, i.e the middle.

That's why Arsenal were so ineffective after Bradley came on in the cup game. With Bradley at fullback, we've been a lot more solid defensively and the right CENTREhalf can focus on his zone.

A centrehalf shouldn't be facing many 1v1s in a game because 1/2 bad tackles and they are off (depending on whether they are the last man).

[Davidbowie]

Xabi Alonso to put Trent in midfield permanently as a DLP and sign Jeremie Frimpong to play at rightback.

You heard it here first.

[Draex]

Xabi Alonso to put Trent in midfield permanently as a DLP and sign Jeremie Frimpong to play at rightback.

You heard it here first.

I'd be fuming if any manager brought in a player to replace Bradley.

[paisley1977]

Xabi Alonso to put Trent in midfield permanently as a DLP and sign Jeremie Frimpong to play at rightback.

You heard it here first.

Has Xabi not seen Connor play?

[Eeyore]

The alternative is to have a fullback that can defend 1v1 like like Bradley.

The game plan of most teams is to beat Trent 1v1 and suck Ibou wide which creates imbalances in our defence as it creates more space in the most dangerous part of the field, i.e the middle.

That's why Arsenal were so ineffective after Bradley came on in the cup game. With Bradley at fullback, we've been a lot more solid defensively and the right CENTREhalf can focus on his zone.

A centrehalf shouldn't be facing many 1v1s in a game because 1/2 bad tackles and they are off (depending on whether they are the last man).

We have always gambled on our centre-backs facing 1v1's though. We used to push both full-backs on with Fabinho dropping in between the centre-backs and the two centre-backs expected to cover the wide areas. That is why we have signed centre-backs who are really good 1v1.

The difference now is that whilst Macca is really good on the ball he simply doesn't have the legs or physicality to drop in and become the central centre-back. We also don't have the likes of Gini and Henderson covering the space the fullbacks vacate.

As for Bradley, he has done brilliantly but it is too early to say whether he is going to remain elite at defending 1v1. He has just come into the team and is a bit of an unknown quantity. However, you can be sure other teams analysts will now be looking for any weaknesses in his defensive game. 

[Chris~]

Wasn't he absolutely fine against Martinelli in the home match?

[MonsLibpool]

Wasn't he absolutely fine against Martinelli in the home match?

https://x.com/KonateFC/status/1754535280143483262?s=20

Ibou held his hand.

[MonsLibpool]

We have always gambled on our centre-backs facing 1v1's though. We used to push both full-backs on with Fabinho dropping in between the centre-backs and the two centre-backs expected to cover the wide areas. That is why we have signed centre-backs who are really good 1v1.

The difference now is that whilst Macca is really good on the ball he simply doesn't have the legs or physicality to drop in and become the central centre-back. We also don't have the likes of Gini and Henderson covering the space the fullbacks vacate.

As for Bradley, he has done brilliantly but it is too early to say whether he is going to remain elite at defending 1v1. He has just come into the team and is a bit of an unknown quantity. However, you can be sure other teams analysts will now be looking for any weaknesses in his defensive game.

We're saying the same thing. It's a glaring weakness in our current team.

[Chris~]

https://x.com/KonateFC/status/1754535280143483262?s=20

Ibou held his hand.

I mean that's, what 3 clips from that game of which most is just him doing normal covering

[MonsLibpool]

I mean that's, what 3 clips from that game of which most is just him doing normal covering

He did a lot of 1v1 defending to cut off Martinelli. Ideally, your centreback shouldn't be playing like a fullback because you already have one.

He has to support Trent and double up because Trent can't hold Martinelli or any tricky and/or speedt winger 1v1.

[Eeyore]

We're saying the same thing. It's a glaring weakness in our current team.

It is also a massive strength though.

People forget it was Trent's distribution that allowed Darwin to torment White in the Cup game. He has also caused Zinchenko huge issues in previous games.

[Eeyore]

He did a lot of 1v1 defending to cut off Martinelli. Ideally, your centreback shouldn't be playing like a fullback because you already have one.

In the modern game, you don't play with four defenders though.

Teams like Arsenal pushing Martinelli on also means he isn't tracking back and we should have chances to get overloads on our right. It isn't black and white.

[MonsLibpool]

It is also a massive strength though.

People forget it was Trent's distribution that allowed Darwin to torment White in the Cup game. He has also caused Zinchenko huge issues in previous games.

He can play passes from the midfield as well and even score more goals too. I see him as a number 8 because his passing is too risky for a number 6 and he's less likely to play on the half-turn in that position.

A number 6 needs to be good with his back to goal. In games where we've moved him to midfield, he tried too many killer passes. I think the variation of his passes will come with time.

[jepovic]

Very negative here! Trent is an unusual player, but overall he is absolutely brilliant and we should be happy to have such a player in our squad.
I think he could be excellent at several positions.

Of course against Arsenal he wasnt fit and didnt do much at all, but thats far from his normal standard. Also, Martinelli is a very good player who creates problems for any RB. It's not like Bradley would have shut him down for 90 min.

A final point is that we need pace up front to make the best use of Trents passing.

[MonsLibpool]

Very negative here! Trent is an unusual player, but overall he is absolutely brilliant and we should be happy to have such a player in our squad.
I think he could be excellent at several positions.

Of course against Arsenal he wasnt fit and didnt do much at all, but thats far from his normal standard. Also, Martinelli is a very good player who creates problems for any RB. It's not like Bradley would have shut him down for 90 min.

A final point is that we need pace up front to make the best use of Trents passing.

It's not fitness. 1v1s are just not his strength  because he's not the quickest nor the most agile. His passing and shooting are assets that can be put to use in another position.

[Kloppage Time]

Arsenal came one game too early for him, he needed more minutes to get up to match level

[Eeyore]

He can play passes from the midfield as well and even score more goals too. I see him as a number 8 because his passing is too risky for a number 6 and he's less likely to play on the half-turn in that position.

A number 6 needs to be good with his back to goal. In games where we've moved him to midfield, he tried too many killer passes. I think the variation of his passes will come with time.

What we can't do though is overload the right-hand side, suck teams across, and then use his incredible passing range to get the likes of Robbo and Diaz on the ball on the left wing.

As for being an 8 they are the very players who need to be able to receive the ball on the half turn to beat the press. Against Arsenal, we were getting Macca on the ball but his passes into the 8's were coming right back to him or the centrebacks and Ali.

[MonsLibpool]

What we can't do though is overload the right-hand side, suck teams across, and then use his incredible passing range to get the likes of Robbo and Diaz on the ball on the left wing.

As for being an 8 they are the very players who need to be able to receive the ball on the half turn to beat the press. Against Arsenal, we were getting Macca on the ball but his passes into the 8's were coming right back to him or the centrebacks and Ali.

Hendo was an 8 for a decade and he wasn't great on the half-turn.

[kloppismydad]

He has a stinker, like every player does, and the general RAWK public comes in here to criticise him and find faults with him in defence/midfield.

Once he's less rusty, he'll be back to his usual 8/10 performances with the 9/10 and 10/10 thrown in generously, and everyone will forget about the nonsense about his position.

[Eeyore]

Hendo was an 8 for a decade and he wasn't great on the half-turn.

We played with a false 9 and two inverted flying wide attackers who looked to attack the space Firmino vacated. We also looked to push both fullbacks on. So we didn't need to play through the press.

The game has evolved and more teams now press and we have become more of a possession based team.

[MonsLibpool]

We played with a false 9 and two inverted flying wide attackers who looked to attack the space Firmino vacated. We also looked to push both fullbacks on. So we didn't need to play through the press. 

The game has evolved and more teams now press and we have become more of a possession based team.

He played as a number 8 in 13/14 when we didn't have that system and we were a pressing team that sought to dominate games whilst leaving the backdoor open.

That team is more similar to the current one in terms of style of play than some think. We had an attacking midfielder as the 6 and an engine in there and it's not like all Hendo did at the number 8 position was run. He was a lot more influential  than that and this was as a number 8 that wasn't great on the half-turn.

It depends and nothing is set in stone just like Macca at the number 6 position which many didn't initially agree with (including me).

[Eeyore]

He played as a number 8 in 13/14 when we didn't have that system and we were a pressing team that sought to dominate games whilst leaving the backdoor open.

That team is more similar to the current one in terms of style of play than some think. We had an attacking midfielder as the 6 and an engine in there and it's not like all Hendo did at the number 8 position was run. He was a lot more influential  than that and this was as a number 8 that wasn't great on the half-turn.

It depends and nothing is set in stone just like Macca at the number 6 position which many didn't initially agree with (including me).

If you are comparing the 13/14 team to the current side then Trent wouldn't be playing the Henderson box-to-box role. He would be playing the Gerrard deep playmaker role. 

[Air Jota]

https://www.cnn.com/videos/sports/2024/02/06/trent-alexander-arnold-liverpool-helping-community-spt-intl.cnn


Well done young man

[Sheer Magnetism]

We were playing a de facto 3-4-3 at the end of last season with Trent on the right and Jones on the left and that worked fine. With these players, you'd probably be looking at Mac Allister and Szobozslai as the two central midfielders, unless you move Trent inside there and put Bradley on the right. Considering how much he comes inside, that might happen anyway.

[LallanaInPyjamas]

When you weigh up all factors itd be nothing short of absolute stubbornness not to give him a run in RCM now

[tubby]

As for being an 8 they are the very players who need to be able to receive the ball on the half turn to beat the press. Against Arsenal, we were getting Macca on the ball but his passes into the 8's were coming right back to him or the centrebacks and Ali.

But the two 8s we started with against Arsenal were Jones and Gravenberch, and both are very good on the half turn and can beat a press?

[JackWard33]

I just don’t see how he plays as a DLP in our current system vs good teams or competent high pressing teams .. can totally see it vs the dross / low blocks (which we kind of have done already) … but his gaps are defensively, getting pressed and gambling with his passing rather than keeping possession (that obv has huge upside as well) so it’s hard to see him there in a high level game - imagine him where Mac was vs arsenal at the weekend, it really wouldn’t be pretty

[killer-heels]

I just don’t see how he plays as a DLP in our current system vs good teams or competent high pressing teams .. can totally see it vs the dross / low blocks (which we kind of have done already) … but his gaps are defensively, getting pressed and gambling with his passing rather than keeping possession (that obv has huge upside as well) so it’s hard to see him there in a high level game - imagine him where Mac was vs arsenal at the weekend, it really wouldn’t be pretty

Think his whole position is moot now until a new manager comes in.