Jordan Henderson has made some very smart comments on team-mate Naby Keita.
The skipper spoke in length about the Guinean during today’s press-conference and is 100% right on his analysis of the 24-year-old.
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“I think everyone can see how good Naby is as a footballer, but as I know myself coming to Liverpool, it’s such a huge club – and especially changing to the Premier League – is tough,” he told the official website.
“It takes time to adapt. I think he’s done really well in certain games he’s played and I can see him getting used to the way we’re playing and the manager has helped him improve, and I can definitely see the potential you can see coming out of him.
“At the same time it takes time to feel right at home, but in the last couple of games you can see the quality that he gives the team and how good he is.”
Keita’s performance against Bournemouth was sensational, and he was impressive in the second-half v West Ham the game before, too.
It does look like he’s slowly starting to understand the tactical requirements of playing in a Jurgen Klopp midfield – which in turn has increased his confidence.
We’ve watched plenty of YouTube clips from his time at Rb Leipzig that showed Keita as a very creative player in the final third, but he actually prefers to pick the ball up deep and dictate with players ahead of him!
This way, he can dribble through the lines or pass through them. On the left, he gets isolated – and doesn’t have the raw pace to be effective in a one v one situation.
However, due to his technical skills and quick feet, he can beat players when he’s in the middle, as he’s comfortable going either past them either way.
We really hope he starts against Bayern on Tuesday – and does himself proud against a Bundesliga opponent he will know very well from Germany.