16 Aug 2019 21:16:13
Could trent become the next Milner? By that I mean could we see maybe trent playing some games in midfield this season, could he become r utility player that every team wants as he gets older?

1.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 21:48:27
Not unless we find another right back.

2.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 22:21:52
Gomez right back? Think matip has done enough to have a shot at centre half for a while.

3.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 22:37:21
I don't think we can be playing Gomez at right back. For me it doesn't work although I do agree that Matip must deem himself unfortunate not to start the first PL game after how he played in the second half of last season.

4.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 22:40:13
I see ox as a versatile utility player for us for years to come. He played in RB for arsenal and has shown the desire and workfare to play any position he is told. A truly model pro.

5.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 22:56:26
Bmena-red. Desire to play any position he's told? He signed for us because he saw himself as a central midfielder while Arsenal were playing him wide. He's signed for us due to the fact that he was told he would be playing in midfield.

6.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 23:09:13
Fair point potato. Just think he has the skills and workrate to play across midfield, wide forwards roles and maybe in the future at rb. from what I have heard from him in interviews he seems a good lad and professional guy who is happy to be LFC.

7.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 23:13:48
Does it depend on what Trent wants? Like at the mo I'm sure he is just stoked to be a regular, and key, player in the starting XI. But I wonder as he heads towards mid-20s whether he gets itchy feet and wants to establish himself in whatever his preferred position is.

8.) 16 Aug 2019
16 Aug 2019 23:47:10
We have more than enough more midfielders, but only one natural senior right back available now. I think it makes no sense to move TAA to midfield now.

9.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 08:43:36
I guess if Klopp doesn't buy a quality right back then Trent will know where he's playing. He might be happy enough there and play out his career in that position and the thoughts of playing in midfield will be a distant memory.

10.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 09:24:36
The most creative right back in the world and some people still want to put him in midfield? Let him develop his game defensively, he's 20 years old already one of the best full backs around, imagine when he's 27!

11.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 09:57:52
Our midfielders are work horses who try and control games by keeping it ticking over by keeping possession which more often than not relies on a simple pass. Trent has creative freedom down the right hand side and had assists up to the Ying yang last season. Asking a player who has loads of freedom to move position into a work horse midfield who have little freedom. I know where I would prefer to play.

{Ed001's Note - that is so not what our midfield does. You really need new glasses.}

12.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 10:00:57
TAA is not going to be anywhere near midfield until prolly late in his career, just like Milner, IMO. He is a RB now and that should be where he should be esp. since there are things he has to work on to be great at that position, which he isn't yet.

As for Ox, he is not a winger and never was. The fact that he played there at Arsenal is the exact reason why he is here. He was not good out wide at the Gunners and even Klopp admitted to making a mistake playing him out wide vs Chelsea so why would anyone think he could play there when Klopp himself just said that he is not good there?

13.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 10:14:30
Cheers for the concern Ed but I’ve never worn glasses. 20/ 20 vision me. I suppose that’s the beauty of the game we all see things differently 👍.

{Ed001's Note - you are seeing things that are not there. That is not and never has been the role of a Klopp midfield, so no you have not got 20/20 vision. You are seeing what you want to see based on your own biases. If you think we play possession football in midfield then you have no understanding of the game at all. The defence will occasionally play it, much to my annoyance, when they stroll around passing it back and fro at walking pace, but not the midfield. That is simply not the way we play. Klopp's way is to go forward, not sideways, and the midfield's job is to get it forward quickly. I really do not know what you have been watching but it was not our midfield.}

14.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 10:23:30
Cheers for the reply Ed 👍.

{Ed001's Note - just saying, it is not our midfield's job and Klopp does not do possession football. He is not Pep or the Brodge and think possession wins games. The job of the midfield is to get the ball forward as quickly as possible to not allow the opposition time to sort out the defensive positioning. That is why we struggle so badly when teams just sit deep, as we are set up to hit quickly into gaps left by players going forward. When that doesn't happen we struggle to break through.}

15.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 10:35:02
Ed001 it’s harder to debate on here as it would be over a pint in the pub mate as it’s easier to misinterpret what people say and i totally agree our speed of getting that ball forward to the front 3 is our key offensive. I didn’t mean it to come across that I was slagging our midfield off or say they are pure possession. The point I was wanting to make was Trent is kind of off the leash down that right hand side (to a certain extent) and moving into midfield would or could actually restrict that. A majority of teams we play these days stick 11 men behind the ball so I was thinking more of those games for the midfield keeping the ball ticking over and keeping the ball. Then against the top European teams and City etc the work horses come out in force.

{Ed001's Note - ok got you, but we need someone to change the point of attack quickly in games like that, which is why Fabinho and van Dijk have made such a difference with their excellent cross field passes. That is why Keita and Ox will be at their best in games like that when they can run with the ball at their feet and commit opponents to a challenge. Someone like Trent in there could add another one with the range of passing to switch it quickly and open up a gap down the side. Though that only makes sense if we have another full-back who can provide the attacking impetus on that side so he can move in.}

16.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 10:59:28
Ed it winds me up when we knock it around at the back we usually cause our own problems when we do it. I think Fabinho Robbo and VVD are not upto their usual standards yet but I reckon the extra time and buzz of winning Wednesday will have done them a world of good fitness and mentally.

{Ed001's Note - it should give them a huge boost in confidence. Fingers crossed.}

17.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 11:05:17
Good point Ed. Do you have any idea then if that’s where Klopp sees him in the future? And has Klopp had him in there during training sessions?

{Ed001's Note - he was a midfielder before mate, he only got put at right back as a short term measure initially. Partly because we were short there and partly to allow him to make errors in a less dangerous position. For a while he was still training as much in midfield as at full back. I believe that was shelved, at least for now, during last season to concentrate solely on his role at full-back. It might be something they revisit later in his career, for now I think he is settling in at right back for a while.}

18.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 11:07:49
With the risk of being corrected by the Ed’s, here is how I see it. The way the team sets out with 3 in midfield, Trent (and Robbo) are best suited at full back. They have licence to use the full pitch up and down and have world class CB and GK to cover them plus a tireless midfield team smart enough to know when to cover. As good as Trent could be in midfield the way we play he will shine more at FB than in the middle of the park.

19.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 11:20:46
Spot on, Ed01. This is why when people compare our midfield or midfielders to that of City and their midfielders, it does my head in to the point of me banging my head on the wall. Our midfield is there to pressure, harrass the opposition into coughing up the ball and then as soon as it is recovered, we release it into the gaps left by the oppo. before they can doe their defensive reset. It is quite a simple thing to grasp as that is the essence of the counter-press (even tho, we don't really play that way fully, anymore) . Ctiy's midfield game is not set up this way hence, the comparison is completely baseless and dishonest.

This is also why we are so difficult to deal with whenever we play City or teams in Europe. They are not used to the type of pressure we put on them in midfield and consequentially, in attack. Pep had to change his tactics to counter what we do in midfield and even then, it still does not work as we saw in the CS game where normally, we put 4 past them had we taken our chances. Just my opinon, Ed.

20.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 11:35:01
Awesome cheers for that Ed001. Will be interesting to see how he develops then. Truth be told as much as it hurts to say Trent will eventually play under a different manager so I suppose a lot of it might come down to them also on how he’s used.

{Ed001's Note - very good point. Each manager has completely different ideas about the game. Though it would take a brave manager to come in and change Trent's role right now! If it didn't work out their job could well be on the line.}

21.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 11:56:57
Redwolf unlike you to share the same opinion as the Ed’s. You do know you are allowed to have your own. We ain’t in school anymore. There’s no teachers pets in here 🤦🏻‍♂️.

22.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 13:09:10
Ed001 your points on the midfield are good but, as you say, problems can arise when teams cede possession and sit deep. Is there no room for someone to come in and help unlock situations like that better?
Shaqiri, in theory, should be he but Klopp’s not using him so much?

{Ed001's Note - if you had read what I said properly, you would see I said we have improved on beating those teams because of the additions of Fabinho and van Dijk, who can play incisive passes from deep. Added to that we have Ox and Keita who can run through the block. Shaqiri adds little to that most of the time, except a laziness to track back which costs us when we do cede possession. I just don't understand why people are so desperate to shoehorn a player like that in, when the team without him managed fine in the second half of the season in beating the low block sides.}

23.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 14:46:34
JK23, Why would I disagree with the Ed when my research of Klopp's style in the past, correlates with what he said to you? I actually agree with the Ed here cos I have known how Klopp plays three years ago cos I actually researched his style since his days at Mainz and how his then Mainz manager (a disciple of Arrigo Sacchi, a counter press guru at AC Milan) instituted this system hence, the one Klopp plays in midfield. But feel free to inform me that I am allowed disagree with him. I was not aware of that till you brought it up, lol. Cheers, mate.

24.) 17 Aug 2019
17 Aug 2019 15:03:11
No worries Redwolf happy to help 👍.