Comments show people still don’t understand Jurgen Klopp’s midfield

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Certain pundits have made comments in recent days that prove people still don’t understand Jurgen Klopp’s midfield.

Both sets of comments came on the same day, in fact. Ex-Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy, in a column for the Mail on Sunday, said that Jack Grealish would start over Naby Keita.

Then there’s Andy Gray on beIN Sports, picking out Liverpool and claiming that Grealish would ‘make their team better’. He explicitly said he’d pick Grealish over Gini Wijnaldum.

Now, Grealish is a fine player but we don’t think he’s the right man for Liverpool. More than that, though, people don’t seem to see what Klopp’s trying to do with his midfield.

He doesn’t want silky creative midfielders. If he did, he’d buy one – it’s as simple as that. Liverpool don’t lack the cash for players they feel they need.

No, what Liverpool aim for are versatile, well-rounded midfielders. There’s a reason Liverpool signed a relegated Gini Wijnaldum for £25m and stuck with a much-maligned Jordan Henderson. James Milner and Adam Lallana have stuck around for so long because they tick the many boxes.

They spent a large amount on Keita for that reason, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain offers the change of pace by being a very quick, direct midfielder. He offers different versatility, able to play out wide and run with the ball, but importantly, with the same energy and discipline as the others.

Klopp wants players who can change their roles mid-game. He wants players who can fill every gap on the field and players who cover multiple positions. Players have to be comfortable everywhere – true box-to-box players, if possible.

Wijnaldum, funnily enough, given Gray’s comments, is the finest example of that.

Liverpool’s midfield do the hard work to allow the full-backs to be the creative outlet, for instance. They allow the front-three to focus almost entirely on their area of the pitch. Liverpool want those versatile support players in midfield or the whole system falls apart.

Can Grealish play holding midfield? No, he’s far more likely to play as a centre-forward. In contrast, every player we’ve listed, other than Oxlade-Chamberlain, has played holding midfield this season. That’s the versatility Klopp wants.

So it doesn’t matter if you think he’s better than the current midfielders. He just doesn’t suit the team and Liverpool would be worse off by having him. That’s no comment on his ability – he’s just the wrong fit.