John Barnes: Liverpool’s Evolution is Taking Great Strides This Summer
Liverpool’s evolution has taken great strides this summer with the arrivals of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, two midfielders who could help the team to a much better showing than last season. To discuss the new-look midfield, we spoke to one of Liverpool’s greatest ever midfielders, John Barnes.
The Need for Positional Requirements
Barnes identified that the midfield had been an issue for a couple of seasons and that the team needed to lower the age and get more legs and more intensity. To do this, Liverpool added three new forwards in the three transfers windows that preceded this one, with Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo, freshening the attack.
However, Barnes felt a necessity for positional requirements and was pleased to see that the team got the players in the right position this time. Last season, in all competitions, Mac Allister scored 12 and assisted three, while Szoboszlai scored 10 and assisted 13 – that’s 22 goals and 16 assists between the Reds’ new men. For comparison, Liverpool’s whole midfield scored 10 and assisted 11 goals last season – and some of them came from players like Elliott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain when playing in the front three.
Goals and Assists or More Stability?
Barnes believes it’s not necessarily about goals, but more balance and stability for the whole side. He believes that when Liverpool won the Champions League and Premier League, they didn’t get goals from midfield, but had good balance, with assists coming from the full backs and goals coming from the front three.
He believes that with Mac Allister and Szoboszlai in the attacking midfield roles in Jurgen Klopp‘s new formation, it will give the team more strength and solidity in midfield. This will allow them to press better and win the ball up the field, allowing the full backs to get further forward.
The Real Heroes
Barnes was speaking exclusively to This Is Anfield to shine a light on some other heroes as part of the LFC Foundation’s visit to eight hospitals in the city to mark the 75th anniversary of the NHS. Barnes knows about well, with two of his children working as doctors in the NHS. He praised the work they do on the ground and said they are the real heroes.
Barnes, alongside Bruce Grobbelaar and Alan Kennedy, hopped on the open top LFC tour bus from Anfield on Wednesday morning, visiting hospitals across Merseyside and surprising staff and patients with the European Cup. He said it was about appreciating what the workers do and that they are the real heroes.
Conclusion
Liverpool’s evolution has taken great strides this summer with the arrivals of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, two midfielders who could help the team to a much better showing than last season. John Barnes believes it’s not necessarily about goals, but more balance and stability for the whole side. He also praised the work of those in the NHS, saying they are the real heroes. The team have added three new forwards in the three transfers windows that preceded this one, freshening up their attack, and Barnes believes they have now sorted their midfield situation. We can expect a much better showing from Liverpool this season with their new-look midfield.