Trent Alexander-Arnold has been central to Liverpool forming a box midfield shape since April, but ahead of facing Wolves this weekend, he was absent from training.
Five months ago, Jürgen Klopp was forced to look in the mirror, with his Liverpool side simply failing to deliver on the pitch. The Reds were winless in four matches — having lost three of them — and they were sat as low as eighth in the Premier League table, having exited every cup competition on the calendar.
Liverpool had suffered from the same recurring concern throughout the campaign up until that point, with opposition sides 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing Klopp’s men on the counter-attack as the likes of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson struggled to hold the fort. The Anfield outfit failed to extinguish fires with the same degree of efficiency as in previous years, and that caused huge problems.
A tactical solution was required, and it stemmed from Klopp’s assistant, Pep Lijnders, with the Dutch coach suggesting that right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold should become a makeshift midfielder in the center of the park whenever Liverpool had possession under control. By drifting inside towards Fabinho, the Scouse defender created a box shape of sorts in midfield.
For the most part, the players forming the box were Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho, Henderson and Curtis Jones, but it was the former who was the architect considering he was the instigator of the shift on the pitch, with none of his teammates possessing the same qualities on the ball.
Since then, Liverpool remains unbeaten in 15 matches in the Premier League. The Reds haven’t lost a single game since Lijnders’ ploy was adopted by the team, with Alexander-Arnold shining as a quarterback in the middle and consequently allowing Klopp’s side to dominate the engine room.
Liverpool has regained its ability to stop counter-attacks using the new approach. Speaking to the Training Ground Guru Podcast last month, Lijnders said as much upon reflection of the tactical tweak, stating: “The team became compact again with the ball.”
“The team became together again and we were really balanced, we didn’t suffer counter-attacks how we suffered them before,” he said. “A little change can be enough for players to feel free and comfortable again. The counter-press was working. Ibou [Konaté] didn’t have to sprint 60 yards with each ball we lose. If you dominate midfield, you will dominate the game, so you have to search for that.”
Liverpool has continued to use the box midfield system this term, winning three matches from a possible four so far, with Alexander-Arnold proving to be central. The homegrown talent is more integral than ever before on Merseyside, but it remains to be seen whether he will be available for selection this weekend.
The Reds are scheduled to face Wolves on Saturday afternoon. It will be a tricky bout, especially if Alexander-Arnold isn’t involved, as he was not pictured in training this week. The English defender was allowed to skip international duty after picking up an injury concern against Aston Villa before the break.
He is in a race to be fit in time for the trip to Molineux, with Klopp potentially having to deviate away from his box shape if Alexander-Arnold is unable to feature. Nobody else in the team can perform the inverted full-back role, meaning the original 4-3-3 could become an option once again.
Liverpool has enough quality within its ranks to beat Wolves on Saturday afternoon, but there is a question mark attached to whether the Reds will be able to cope with counter-attacks without the box in place. Fabinho and Henderson are no longer at the club after both moved to Saudi Arabia this summer, with the likes of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai set to be tested on the defensive side of the game.
Overall, Liverpool’s big weakness from last season could return this weekend. If Alexander-Arnold is out, it will be up to Mac Allister and Szoboszlai to perform better than Fabinho and Henderson did by making the difference in the center.
