A chart of Thiago Alcantara’s midfield positions taken up for Liverpool this season has revealed that the club have yet to allow the No.6 to settle in one position, as reported by The Athletic.
Some will certainly argue that one of Liverpool’s main strengths of the prior terms has been some degree of fluidity, albeit to a significantly lesser extent for the midfield trio in comparison to our forward line.
It’s worth giving some thought to the fact, however, that the Spaniard was brought in with the specific purpose of adding an extra edge to the side for when we come up against opposition favouring a low-block.
READ MORE: (Video) Jurgen Klopp names his favourite Merseyside derby moments
Thiago is, by design, meant to play a more advanced role in midfield, with the likes of Jordan Henderson, Gini Wijnaldum or Fabinho behind him to counterbalance his forward-focused play.
This isn’t an oversight on Jurgen Klopp’s part, of course, but rather the unfortunate consequence of our injury crisis in defence, which has forced the German to drag vital midfielders into the back four.
Nonetheless, it’s clear that the chopping and changing of Thiago’s position for Liverpool in the midfield trio will have undoubtedly had an impact on the level of contribution the former Bayern star can offer.
You can see the image below, courtesy of The Athletic:
Says a lot, doesn't it pic.twitter.com/MSdYkis7JZ
— OrigOrigi (@OrigiOrig) February 20, 2021