Jurgen Klopp was almost at a complete loss for words to describe the quality of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s latest showing for Liverpool.
The former Borussia Dortmund head coach eventually settled on ‘absolutely insane’ – a description well-deserved by a footballer who appears to be absolutely thriving in his new role in the middle of the park.
“I love the counter-press, I love the way we build up, I loved, to be honest… the stuff Trent played was… wow! Absolutely insane,” the German gave his verdict to BT Sport.
There was yet another assist for the England international, who supplied the crucial pass for Cody Gakpo’s stunning equalising goal in the first-half of action.
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It’s hard to disagree with the German’s assessment and it certainly raises wider questions around how our No.66 will be utilised next term.
Fundamentally, it’s clear that Alexander-Arnold benefits from having access to the space ahead of him granted by starting deep in a fullback role and venturing out when we’re in possession of the ball.
Starting higher up the pitch, whilst not entirely stripping the right-back of space to exploit would force him to be much cuter in smaller pockets of space, which could then have a negative impact as far as getting the most out of his creative abilities are concerned.
Equally, there’s an argument of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ to reliably fall back on whilst one of England’s most talented footballers continues to be posting world-class outings from his hybrid role.
Fans can watch the full post-match interview below, courtesy of BT Sport:
"The stuff we played was absolutely incredible."
Jürgen Klopp was delighted with Liverpool's performance against West Ham 👏 pic.twitter.com/aABiixZP72
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) April 26, 2023