Conor Bradley has been so good for Liverpool recently that questions are being raised about Trent Alexander-Arnold. Xabi Alonso may finally have an answer. Conor Bradley has made it very difficult for Jurgen Klopp to drop him. The 20-year-old scored a goal and provided two assists in Liverpool’s stunning win over Chelsea.
Of course, it will be difficult for Klopp to keep Trent Alexander-Arnold off the pitch. He came off the bench against Chelsea to return to fitness, but that could have ended with the big trip to Arsenal at the weekend. But looking at his last game and every game since he joined the team, Bradley will be a real asset at the Emirates.
He joined in the joke about how he now faces the small task of dethroning Alexander-Arnold, but whether Liverpool can handle both at the same time is a serious debate. Perhaps that won’t be a problem for Klopp. He is unlikely to make major system changes in his final months at the club, with Liverpool tracking the Poway player. But his successor faces a very good dilemma.
Klopp has left behind a squad full of talent that won’t reach the top level for a few more years. And if Xabi Alonso is the right man for the job, Liverpool’s system can also accommodate Alexander-Arnold and Bradley. Obviously, we’re dealing with a lot of unknowns here.
Alonso may not be the next manager, and even if he is, there is no guarantee that he will follow Bayer Leverkusen’s tactics. We’re still waiting for Klopp to sign Liverpool’s new Mario Gotze to unlock the 4-2-3-1 he favored at Borussia Dortmund. But one thing is clear. Liverpool will work hard to rebuild this summer.
Klopp has been in charge for eight-and-a-half years and now all of a sudden there are new ideas and a lot of backroom staff are changing. This makes fundamentally new tactics possible on the ground.
Leverkusen’s Alonso trio could be the perfect solution to Bradley and Alexander-Arnold’s problems. Despite his extraordinary talent, Bradley is not another Alexander-Arnold. He could develop in that direction, but right now he’s a traditional attacking defender, despite being a very good player. Bomb back and forth tirelessly for 90 minutes, never tiring with his defensive work rate and creative quality. This fits the full-back role in Alonso’s system very well.
Bradley primarily stars as Jeremy Frimpong, while Andy Robertson plays a similar role alongside Alex Grimaldo. A back three does not appear to be an immediate fit for Liverpool’s personnel due to their relatively limited options. However, one of Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Joe Gomez or Jarell Quanza isn’t bad at all, and Alonso could also be employed in the role.
The Alexander-Arnold platform will shine before them. As a player, he has a lot in common with Alonso in terms of how easily he can spread the ball around and will have plenty of space to do so in one of his deeper playing roles. It would not be fair to say that he is the equal of Granit Xhaka.
However, to be fair, the former Arsenal man has performed well in Germany, with passing distance being the most important. Many believe that if Alexander-Arnold moves into midfield, he will need to use the No.8 rather than the No.6 to unleash his creativity. But with his long passes being such a weapon, there is reason to keep most of the field in front of him, and in the double corners there is room to go forward, perhaps with Alexis McAllister.
A really interesting “back eight” so to speak. The front three will be tasked with applying heavy pressure and finding ways to score, with Bradley and Robertson providing greater attacking ability. Alonso currently uses two floating playmakers behind a striker.
Again, this isn’t the most obvious choice for Liverpool, but it doesn’t take much imagination to see that a slightly modified version would work well. With each passing week, it becomes harder and harder to ignore Darwin Nunes as the man in charge. He could be Alonso’s new Victor Boniface.
Behind him, Mohamed Salah is used to being in the pocket and has recently been tested in a central role for Egypt, producing reasonable results. Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz could take the final spot. Neither player has been specifically linked with Jonas Hoffman or Florian Wirz, the latter of whom would be a very interesting move to jump-start Alonso’s reign and solve that problem.
However, all have shown versatility in the offense. Or, more convincingly, Dominik Soboslay could take on one of those roles alongside Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott. This means that some top talent will be left out and an additional centre-back will eliminate attacking options. But as demand grows to bring Bradley and Alexander-Arnold into the same Liverpool team, the trade-offs become more apparent. Maybe Alonso has the perfect solution.
Xabi Alonso’s possible Liverpool squad: Alisson; Konate, Van Dijk, Gomes; Bradley, Alexander-Arnold, McAllister, Robertson; Salah, Soboslei; Nunez
