Ryan Mason has hailed one Liverpool player as an ‘exceptional footballer’ ahead of Tottenham’s visit to Anfield on Sunday.
Spurs’ acting head coach held his pre-match press conference on Friday when he was asked about the threat posed by Trent Alexander-Arnold in his newly-adopted inverted full-back role.
The 31-year-old replied (as per football.london): “Obviously we’re talking about an exceptional footballer but they’ve got many different players who can cause us problems. They’ve proven that over the years and we’re aware of that.
“The focus for us isn’t on one individual as it’s about stopping them as a team and also it’s about us acting as a team with the ball and hopefully hurting them as well.”
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Mason took a neutral, tight-lipped stance on every other Liverpool-related question in the press conference (football.london), so it was noteworthy that he spoke so highly of Trent when the question about the 24-year-old was put to him.
The Reds’ number 66 has thrived in his new, more central role, with his deft pass to set up Cody Gakpo’s equaliser against West Ham in midweek his fifth assist in just four games.
Spurs are among his favourite opponents, too, having won 10 of 13 previous games against them and drawn the other three, with a goal and two assists in previous face-offs with the north London club (Transfermarkt).
While Mason has understandably hailed Trent, he’s also right in saying that stopping the 24-year-old won’t automatically win the game for Tottenham.
Our forwards have found their form of late, with Diogo Jota scoring four in his last three games, Mo Salah boasting four in four and Gakpo netting two in his last three outings. There’s also Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz to be sprung from the bench if Jurgen Klopp sticks with the same forward trio.
Spurs carry their own danger that Liverpool will need to neutralise, with Harry Kane grabbing six goals in his last seven top-flight matches (Transfermarkt), so both teams will likely be focused on balancing the maximisation of their attacking assets with curbing the opposition’s most potent threats.