Darren Bent says Liverpool have an ‘unbelievable’ player, but he just doesn’t fit

Add as preferred source on Google

New Liverpool signing Alexis Mac Allister isn’t the answer to Jurgen Klopp’s midfield issues of last season.

That’s according to former England striker Darren Bent. Speaking to DR Sports following Mac Allister’s signing this week, Bent said that although he thinks the Argentine is a good signing for Liverpool, he isn’t quite what the Reds needed.

“Good signing that, is he what they need, though?” queried the pundit. “Don’t get me wrong, I like him, I think he’s very good. But he can’t run. What’s Liverpool’s midfield problem? There’s no legs.”

Pressed as to why he doesn’t think Mac Allister is the answer for the Reds, Bent suggested that Klopp needed a player much more like one of his former charges.

“Listen, don’t get me wrong, he’s an unbelievable midfield player,” explained the 38-year-old. “But when I think of Liverpool in the past and what made them so successful, people like [Gini] Wijnaldum ratting around, pace, pace, pace in the middle of the park.”

Bent raises Mac Allister concern

To suggest that Mac Allister can’t run is quite a strange take from Bent. Okay, he may not be a lung-buster in the sense that Wijnaldum was, but he can absolutely get around the pitch.

But taking Bent at face value, there is something that’s slightly nagging us over Mac Allister. Just one, minor thing, really.

At 5ft 9in, the Argentina international is quite small. There’s no getting away from that. He isn’t the smallest in the Reds squad – Harvey Elliott stands at around 5ft 7in. But he isn’t exactly a six-footer a la Curtis Jones, Fabinho, or even Jordan Henderson.

Mac Allister is actually more or less the same size as Thiago Alcantara. That’s fine of course, his height never exactly held Thiago back.

But nevertheless, is it wise to include two players of such relative shortness in the same midfield? Maybe, but in this ultra-physical iteration of the Premier League, maybe not.

Thankfully, Liverpool look to have a remedy for that just around the corner. Khephren Thuram seems like he could well be the Reds’ next signing, and he stands at a pretty giant 6ft 4in.

Even if Thuram isn’t brought in though, this isn’t going to worry us. We’re delighted about Mac Allister joining the club and in time he’ll surely prove Bent absolutely categorically wrong.