Liverpool suffered from a poor start to last season. Injuries in the midfield in the early stages of the season and in the forwards midway through the season meant that time passed without the best group of players.
Although they recovered following the change of Trent Alexander-Arnold to a false side-back, everyone was hoping for reinforcements this summer.
Among them, the replacement of the midfielders, whose contracts had expired and several players had left the club, and whose average age had increased, was the club’s top priority to solve.
Liverpool moved quickly, and as soon as the Premier League ended, they succeeded in acquiring Argentine midfielder Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton.
About a month later, they welcomed Hungarian midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai to the team as their second player. The acquisition of Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia is also rumored, but it does not seem very positive at the moment, and it seems that the midfield reinforcement is complete once and for all.
However, Paul Merson, who played for Arsenal, Aston Villa, and Portsmouth during his playing days and has also made 21 appearances for England, was quick to point to Liverpool’s reinforcements and insisted that they should acquire a player who can run around in the center of the pitch with inexhaustible stamina.
“I’m a big fan of Alexis Mac Allister, he’s very simple and effective. He’s not got major legs and isn’t the strongest midfielder you’ll see, but he’ll keep things ticking for Liverpool in the centre of the park and play a big role in their build-up play,”
“However, Liverpool are crying out for legs in midfield – we saw what happened to them last season. The likes of Jordan Henderson and Thiago Alcantara are at the fag end of their careers, so they need a lot more than just Mac Allister to become a force to be reckoned with once again.”
“I haven’t seen enough of Dominik Szoboszlai to pass a judgement, but if you’re a Liverpool fan, you’d be hoping he has the legs and the engine to give them what they missed dearly last season.”
“Mac Allister flourished at Brighton with someone like Moises Caicedo next to him, with the Ecuador international’s engine and defensive acumen acting as the perfect foil to his skillset,”
“He’s an absolute bargain for £35 million, but I still think Liverpool need more midfield reinforcements.”
“I’ve said for the longest time that Trent Alexander-Arnold is the best passer in English football, but I was actually shocked by the amount of adulation he got for his performance for England on international duty. They played against Malta and North Macedonia, c’mon.”
“He has been deployed in midfield recently by Gareth Southgate and Jurgen Klopp, but I still think he will play as a right-back next season.”
Sportskeeda