One of Jürgen Klopp’s key stars looks to be back to his very best in 2023 having started the year strong and that could prove to be a major boost for Liverpool’s season.
It’s a new year, but the same old Liverpool. So far, 2023 hasn’t really reaped the change Jürgen Klopp would have been desperate for with the persistent problems that haunted the club towards the back end of last year still very much present.
But the new year may have brought good fortune for one Liverpool player at least, and perhaps Klopp can take solace in that.
Trent Alexander-Arnold has so far endured his worst campaign when it comes to his creative output. While his underlying numbers have been as solid as ever, the Liverpool full-back didn’t register a single assist in the Premier League from August to December.
A trip to Qatar saw him end the year with bitter disappointment having only featured in one World Cup game for England at the tournament, mostly tasked with warming the bench for Gareth Southgate. But rather than letting that dismantle his confidence, Alexander-Arnold has returned to Liverpool looking back to his very best.
Two games into 2023, he has already registered two assists with a spectacular ball into Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain against Brentford and an equally splendid long ball into Darwin Núñez against Wolves in the FA Cup.
In general, Alexander-Arnold has been hugely influential since returning from the World Cup: almost fully returned to his best.
His stupendous pass into Andy Robertson’s path against Aston Villa in his first game back from the World Cup was pivotal for Liverpool to take the lead in that game and Liverpool later scored their second goal of the game from a corner delivered by Alexander-Arnold.
Against Leicester in Liverpool’s last game of the season, it was again Alexander-Arnold’s cross that led to the Reds’ opener with Wout Faes turning it into his own net.
Neither of the three contributions will go down as an assist, but they were all essential in order to make the goals happen, and while there are still plenty of problems at Anfield that need to be solved, it seems like needing to get Alexander-Arnold back to his prolific form is no longer one of them for Klopp.
Considering on his day he is one of the best full-backs in world football, that’s a huge boost for Liverpool. At times the Reds have struggled to break down resilient opposition who have sat back and defended them from deep.
In previous seasons, Liverpool would have been able to bypass tactics like that by having someone like Alexander-Arnold thread the ball into his teammates and create chances by playing patiently to find the cracks in the wall in front of him.
Perhaps if there is one good thing to come out of 2023, it is that, at least going forward, Liverpool won’t have to worry about creating chances once again. If Alexander-Arnold can continue in the same way he ended 2022 and started the new year, then he could be in for an extremely fruitful few months ahead, and that’s at least very exciting for the club.
Source: liverpool.com
