Fabinho is now regarded as the world’s best holding midfielder.
This calendar year, the Brazilian has been mindbogglingly good for Liverpool and is the team’s lynchpin at the heart of Jurgen Klopp’s central three.
His job is incredibly hard as the two midfielders either side of him bomb forward and head towards the touchline, meaning he’s often covering a huge amount of ground by himself.
Yet he’s done it with aplomb and has been a vital part of our recent success, which included a Champions League victory in June and a 97 point Premier League haul.
But there was a time when the now 26-year-old was considered a right-back not only by his managers, but by the player himself.
According to the Telegraph, when extending his AS Monaco contract before Liverpool eventually came knocking, Fabinho insisted a clause in the deal stating he’d be used exclusively as a right-back!
We cannot imagine this was agreed, as Fab began to establish a worldwide European reputation anchoring Monaco’s midfield – highlighted by their Ligue 1 success and run to the Champions League semi-finals.
It’s worth remembering though that should Trent Alexander-Arnold either need a break, Fabinho is not the worst option for the role – although he’s best at no.6.