James Milner - Right At Left-Back
At the end of the transfer window, Jurgen Klopp looked at his left back options, nodded and moved on. With Alberto Moreno throwing himself about with reckless abandon, the German gave the shirt to the 30 year old James Milner, knowing that the Yorkshireman would simply get on with it. Left back was done as far as he was concerned, though some questioned the wisdom of having a veteran player in such a demanding role.
Eyebrows were also raised at …
Loris Karius - Undisputed Liverpool Number 1?
The Liverpool fanbase is littered with inconsistencies.
People go from really disliking a player to raving about him in a matter of weeks. A player can go from being considered one of the best at the club to not being rated because they've left the club. You can adore one player so excuse everything he does while chastising a player you dislike for doing exactly the same thing.
We're fickle, we're tribal and we're reactionary. It makes for some enjoyable/heated …
Giorginio Wijnaldum: Liverpool's Gini in a Lamp
In recent seasons, I think Liverpool’s transfer dealings – signings mostly – have been pretty poo. From Balotelli and Benteke to Carroll and Markovic, there have been a number of expensive signings bought for their individual quality rather than as crucial cogs in a cohesive machine.
I think the aforementioned are all talented players, but Markovic spent some of his time under Brendan Rodgers at right wing-back, and I’ve never really known Liverpool to succeed on the route one, cross-pumping …
Why the Simon Mignolet era is likely to end soon
On a weekend where more than a few headlines were devoted to Manchester City’s new goalkeeper Claudio Bravo and his struggles in the derby at Old Trafford, 34 miles down the road his (presumably outgoing) counterpart at Liverpool, Simon Mignolet, provided an expert, if subtle, lesson on why Pep Guardiola’s decision to allow Joe Hart out on loan to Torino was the correct one, a lesson so timely and apt that not even the England number one’s mistake against Atalanta …
The Rise of Roberto Firmino
Irony can be a funny thing.
In 2014, Northern Irishman Brendan Rodgers, The King of Calm, steadily led Liverpool within touching distance of the elusive Premier League title, only for the Reds to stumble an inch from the finishing line. After inevitably failing to replace the irreplaceable Luis Suarez, they underwhelmed and underachieved the following season. Liverpool’s famous ‘transfer committee’ turned to the transfer market for the answers to the club’s troublesome year. One such answer came from TSG 1899 …
A Case for Marković
Since his arrival from Benfica two summers ago for a healthy £20 million, the word which best describes Serbian wide man Lazar Marković has almost universally been "frustrating."
In his debut season he struggled to break into the first team, despite inconsistent performances from fellow new-boy Adam Lallana. While Lallana struggled to get into promising positions and his touch too often let him down, Lallana worked tirelessly and his work ethic was never in doubt. Marković, meanwhile, struggled to affect play …
Kevin Stewart: Midfield Destroyer?
For months now, perhaps even years, we analyse our team’s strength and weaknesses and form an opinion on what type of player we should target in the upcoming transfer window to bolster our squad, and there was always a constant figure in the equation, a defensive midfielder. Someone who is just a mad bastard in that midfield area, whose main responsibility is to protect the defensive line, making tackle after tackle, covering full-backs who push further up the field or any …
A look at Ragnar Klavan - Strengths and Weaknesses
A sluggish transfer window picked up pace on Sunday evening when all the reliable journalists; Paul Joyce, Ben Smith and Tony Barrett, broke the news that Liverpool hoped to wrap up deals for Newcastle's Gini Wijnaldum and Augsburg's Ragner Klavan within the next week. Anfield Index's very own Alax Barilaro wrote an informative piece on the former, which can be found here, but there hasn't been much on the big Estonian defender.
Ragnar, not to be confused with the Thor …
The Enigma of Mario Balotelli
Mario Balotelli - one of the biggest enigma’s in world football. Balotelli and his ‘potential’ have been talked about now for years. This article won’t be looking at stats because quite frankly they do not show the real Balotelli, this is just my view. The harsh reality for Mario is, he is 25 and soon to be 26, and despite some famous and unfortunately infamous moments, Balotelli has never got to a whisker of his massive potential. Does that mean …
Nathaniel Clyne - Liverpool's Most Underated Player?
There's a strange narrative surrounding Nathaniel Clyne, a divide amongst Liverpool supporters. Some argue he's the finest right-back in the country, others doubt his contribution and want him to be replaced. For a player of such stability and consistency it amazes me that he draws such negative attention. So I thought best to explore both sides of this argument, discovering the reasons and the factors that drive them.
Signed last summer for a fee of £12.5 million, a relative snip …