There is one debate dominating Liverpool conversations at the moment, the midfield.
Who plays in the double pivot? Where does Dominik Szoboszlai fit? How much can Trey Nyoni play? What happens with Ryan Gravenberch? These questions keep coming back because, five or six games into the campaign, we have already seen combinations that work and combinations that have caused problems.
For me, the clearest combination we have seen is Alexis Mac Allister alongside Nyoni.
I keep coming back to the same questions. Who looks most comfortable on the ball? Mac Allister and Nyoni. Who uses it best? Mac Allister and Nyoni. Who looks most progressive? Mac Allister and Nyoni. Who appears naturally suited to playing in that double pivot? Again, Mac Allister and Nyoni.
Against Tottenham, Nyoni gave Liverpool something remarkably simple and incredibly valuable, a functional midfield.
His body position was good, he was facing the right way, he took possession calmly and looked to move Liverpool forward. Mac Allister alongside him had the freedom to influence the game while still contributing defensively.
The issue is minutes.
Andoni Iraola revealed afterwards that Nyoni was cramping when he came off. This was his first start of the season and he lasted around 64 minutes. He is 19 and has played very little senior football. Liverpool have to manage that carefully.
That is the only major reservation I currently have about putting him into this midfield more regularly.
Szoboszlai Brings Liverpool an Obvious Trade Off
Dominik Szoboszlai fascinates me because his attacking contribution is impossible to ignore.
Since joining Liverpool, no player from a Premier League club has scored more goals from outside the box in all competitions than Szoboszlai, with 13. This season he already has three goals in all competitions and has created 16 chances.
His shooting numbers are significant too, with 2.6 shots per 90 and 0.6 goals per 90.
That attacking prowess explains why Iraola keeps looking towards him.
Then you examine the other side of playing him in a double pivot.
In the Premier League this season, Szoboszlai has won 11 of 35 duels, 31.4 per cent. He has won two of his 10 aerial duels, 20 per cent, and has made four successful tackles across 360 minutes.
We have seen moments on the pitch that support those numbers.
There was an example against Monaco in pre season when Szoboszlai was caught out of position before Monaco carried the ball forward and eventually won a penalty. Against Newcastle, he followed Yoane Wissa before allowing him to spin away and advance downfield in the move which eventually resulted in Newcastle’s second goal.
Against Atletico Madrid, there was another occasion when a midfielder was allowed to advance through Liverpool’s midfield almost unchallenged.
These are the moments Iraola has to weigh against everything Szoboszlai offers going forward.
His physical output helps explain Iraola’s thinking too. Szoboszlai covered more than 11 kilometres per game last season and his sprinting distance was 13.3 kilometres across the campaign, with 618 sprints recorded. Those numbers show the engine he possesses.
I want Szoboszlai in this Liverpool team. The question is where Liverpool get the greatest benefit from him.
I would like to see him in a withdrawn role on the right, somewhere he can cross, shoot, make runs and use that extraordinary physical capacity. Steven Gerrard once produced an enormously productive season after Rafa Benitez moved him towards the right. The player might prefer central midfield, while the manager ultimately has to decide where his qualities provide the greatest value to the team.
McConnell, Koumas and Nyoni Give Liverpool Energy
Liverpool did not dominate Tottenham from the opening whistle. Spurs had plenty of the ball early and looked dangerous.
What helped Liverpool grow into the match was effort.
James McConnell and Lewis Koumas were central to that.
The remarkable thing about their performances was how few touches they actually required to influence proceedings. McConnell recorded 24 touches and Koumas 27, yet their heat maps show how widely they operated.
Koumas pressed everywhere. McConnell kept going throughout the match.
There were also occasions when Liverpool simply stopped opponents advancing. McConnell produced one moment when an opponent escaped the press and he brought him down. Sometimes that type of action matters. Liverpool have missed players who recognise when an attack needs stopping.
The effort from these younger players became infectious.
It also provides Iraola with another reminder of what his football requires.
He wants Liverpool recovering possession high up the pitch because that creates better attacking situations. We saw that against Ipswich when Liverpool recovered possession before Cody Gakpo drove forward in the move for Alexander Isak’s first goal.
That brings the discussion towards Liverpool’s attackers.
Florian Wirtz is averaging 12.2 kilometres per 90. That is an enormous workload. Bradley Barcola is averaging 10.7 kilometres, as is Victor Muñoz, albeit in a small sample size. Isak is currently averaging under 10 kilometres.
With Isak, Liverpool have to consider his physical condition and injury history. It would be foolish simply to demand that he immediately reaches Wirtz’s 12.2 kilometres per game.
He can still do more.
Iraola has repeatedly spoken about the physical demands on his forwards. Liverpool’s attackers need time to adapt, particularly players adjusting to a new league and a new system, while the manager has been clear about wanting more running and pressing from the front.
Wirtz cannot carry that workload alone.
Araujo Has Changed Liverpool’s Right Side
Another area where Iraola appears to have learned quickly is right back.
Jeremie Frimpong gave everything against Tottenham. There were tackles and recoveries which were appreciated by the Anfield crowd. His effort was obvious.
Tottenham still targeted Liverpool’s right side repeatedly.
That made sense with Rio Ngumoha ahead of Frimpong. Liverpool had a very young winger and a right back whose strengths lie further forward. Tottenham attacked that area and created opportunities from it, including the chance for Mohammed Kudus and the Lucas Bergvall effort saved by Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Ronald Araujo provides something completely different.
The Premier League numbers underline the difference. Araujo has played 195 minutes compared with Frimpong’s 179. Araujo has been dribbled past once, Frimpong three times. Araujo has won 16 of 26 duels, 60.7 per cent, while Frimpong has won six of 13, 46.2 per cent.
Araujo has also won 12 of 18 aerial duels, made 12 clearances and nine recoveries. Frimpong has seven clearances and seven recoveries.
Araujo may not look like a conventional Iraola right back, yet the Premier League creates different demands. Teams identify weaknesses and attack them.
We saw Nottingham Forest repeatedly look for the switch towards the back post against Frimpong. Spurs also concentrated attacks down Liverpool’s right.
Araujo changes that calculation because he is bigger and stronger defensively.
For me, Araujo is first choice at right back now. Joe Gomez can provide rotation there if Liverpool can keep him available. I would prefer to see Frimpong used further forward, perhaps as a relief right winger where his speed, ability to attack defenders and willingness to run can become attacking weapons.
That would represent Iraola adapting his preferred approach to the players Liverpool actually have.
Iraola Must Keep Rewarding Liverpool Performances
This is ultimately what I want to see from Iraola over the coming weeks.
Learn. Adapt. Be ruthless when necessary.
Frimpong was struggling and Araujo came into the side. Gravenberch was struggling and Mac Allister returned. Mac Allister looks refreshed. Gakpo looks refreshed. Nyoni has now produced a performance which demands consideration.
Gravenberch, on what we have seen so far, is currently fourth among Liverpool’s double pivot options for me.
When he came on against Tottenham with Liverpool trying to protect the game, there were moments when Bergvall and Marmoush covered significantly more ground while Gravenberch failed to track the danger. There were also cheap losses of possession. Liverpool had brought him on looking for greater control and did not receive it.
That matters when selection is supposed to be based on performance.
Iraola has not inherited a squad perfectly constructed for his football. Liverpool have limitations in midfield and other areas. What he can control is how effectively he uses what he has.
Mac Allister and Nyoni have shown him a midfield platform. Araujo has provided defensive solidity on the right. Koumas and McConnell have demonstrated the energy younger players can inject. Szoboszlai continues to offer extraordinary attacking and physical qualities which need to be deployed in the right area. Wirtz has shown the running levels Iraola expects from his attacking players.
Now I want to see those lessons carried forward.
If players earn the shirt, let them keep it.
Liverpool have attacking talent. They have improving defensive options. They have young players demanding opportunities. Iraola’s task is to find the combination which allows those individual pieces to function together.
If he continues learning from what happens on the pitch, Liverpool have something to build upon.