I saw Jurgen Klopp turn 26-year-old Liverpool player into James Milner vs Southampton last night

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There were a lot of players who impressed for Liverpool against Southampton last night. But mainly the night will be about Liverpool’s youngsters.

Jayden Danns will grab the headlines for his brace, and it was a fantastic performance from the youngster. But Danns was not alone, Lewis Koumas also netted for Liverpool, getting the all important first goal on his senior debut. Together, the two of them did what has never been achieved before in Liverpool’s history.

Then there was Bobby Clark, who got the all important first assist of the game and created four chances on the pitch. This was already his 10th appearance for Liverpool and he seemed to thrive on his first start of the season.

But amidst all the great performances, there was one more experienced player who went under the radar for his key contribution.

Joe Gomez is James Milner’s reincarnation

For the first time in his Liverpool career, Joe Gomez didn’t play in defence for Liverpool. Instead, he was asked to play as the holding midfielder. It was a decision forced on Jurgen Klopp.

But Gomez never put a foot wrong. He grew into the game dictating and dominating Southampton later on while wearing the captain’s armband.

He’s got so much experience it’s easy to forget that Gomez is still only 26-years-old. He’s far from being a seasoned veteran. Gomez still definitely has plenty of years left at the very top of his game.

Last night, he proved he can be a very valuable squad player. He’s now pretty much played in every defensive position this season. From right-back to left-back, to playing on both sides in the centre-back position and now as a holding midfielder.

In this sense, yesterday we very much witnessed Jurgen Klopp’s new James Milner. Gomez is very much that utility player who can be relied upon anywhere on the pitch that Milner used to be until he left last summer.