Liverpool’s last meeting with Arsenal had a profound impact on last year’s title fortunes. The same day was also potentially decisive in this season’s race.
If Jurgen Klopp wins a second Premier League title in May, his team’s rapid improvement will be based on Arsenal’s trip to Anfield in April and the ‘reinvention’ of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
After a turbulent season that culminated in a comprehensive defeat of Real Madrid in the Champions League and defeat of Manchester City at the Etihad, Klopp and his coaching staff redesigned Liverpool’s formation, with the revamp shifting between Alexander-Arnold at right-back and right-back. He started in the hybrid role, which he transitioned into. and midfield.
The 2-2 draw with Arsenal marked the first time Alexander-Arnold had a roaming licence. Liverpool are unbeaten in 10 matches for the rest of the season and have lost just once in their 17 matches this season.
Alexander-Arnold recalls receiving his new instructions with enthusiasm, his days as an ‘orthodox’ full-back (if ever they were) completely and utterly over.
“Initially the coach and Pep Lijnders [assistant coach] “Me and I talked about it the week before the game, it was something I was excited about,” Alexander-Arnold recalls.
“Obviously I had seen other teams do it and then when I was asked to do it I thought it would challenge me. It was something I enjoyed a lot and the team adapted to it. There’s a lot of focus on me and the system is kind of painted over because of me and just because I moved there The biggest change is me.
“But technically everyone is moving. The back three players change, you have midfield, the two 8 players then move up and the wingers drop a little deeper so everyone can move. Everyone adapted well.
“We’ve had a lot of changes but the system works and you can see it even when I’m not in the team. We were still doing it with Joe when I got injured briefly in September. [Gomez] and Conor Bradley can do that really well as we saw in pre-season before he got injured. “It’s about the system rather than who plays there.”
Alexander-Arnold admits it is not a unique tactic, with Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta using their full-backs in similar ways.
But the 25-year-old has tried to put his own spin on the position, as he has done as a marauding right-back who is more like a winger.
“I’m already studying the game. “I like to think that I’ve watched a lot of football, watched a lot of matches and seen different systems, different players playing and how they interpret it and what they’re asked to do,” he says.
“But the most important thing for me was to achieve what they wanted from me and to try and implement how I could get the best out of myself and the team. Wherever I am asked to play, no matter how I am asked to play, this is my goal.
“It’s changed and evolved over time. Some games you’ll see I’m not that much in the middle, and some games I’m there all the time.
“We have analysts, great coaches and a great manager who give us information on where the space might be and where I can get the ball.”
Alexander-Arnold cites examples of being marked by the human being and realizing he needs to improvise in games.
“I’m thinking about the Villa game in September where we won 3-0 and I got injured. [later in the match] – on that play I was very deep and I came out just outside the block, I was on the back line and I was receiving the ball,” he says.
They couldn’t put too much pressure on me and I managed to get the ball from the back. We experienced some joy this way. You can see how well they are performing in the league, how difficult it is to break them. We were able to do that and it was based on the instructions I was given to get off the block because they’re going to make it really compact, it’s going to be hard to get on the ball and be able to turn and move. play. There are different ways to reach teams.
“You can go through them, you can go around them or over them and Villa were getting past them. “This is an example of where I was asked to do something different and we adapted in a different way.”
It is inevitable that Arteta will have a plan to neutralize Alexander-Arnold, who is aware that he is Liverpool’s creative centre. The battle for influence with Declan Rice will shape the balance of the fixture.
In the first 27 league games of last season – before Arsenal’s visit – Alexander-Arnold made just three assists, scored one goal and averaged 2.1 chances on goal per game. In his 24 Premier League appearances since then, those numbers have increased significantly (tripling in some cases) and he is ranked No. 1 on the Opta chart for amount of possessions gained; He is a complete midfielder who effectively starts as a right-back.
He also admits that this move added a new dimension to Liverpool and gave him a new life.
“We showed incredible consistency as a team and won matches in different ways. He has had a positive impact on all of us, especially me, and I am sure he will improve and adapt over time,” he said.
“We need to keep this going. This weekend is a big weekend.”