The transformation of the Liverpool midfielder: reasons to be happy, parts 1, 2 and 3

Liverpool’s recent victory at Anfield against Bournemouth might not have been as haunting as it was at this time last year, but there were signs of a new horizon.

A promising end to the season in terms of form and results, an initially optimistic start to our summer transfer business, then disruptive Arabian Nights followed by no return attempts to lure Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia to Anfield.

Add an incomplete stand at Anfield and things are a bit turbulent.

Glad everything is going well on the pitch as the new season has started…

An overly generous and sloppy opening, profuse gifts offered as a goal in our own half seemed elusive. When the ball first landed in the Liverpool net on Saturday, the incident itself – and the linesman’s flag – should have acted like fragrant salts.

But they didn’t.

Even with a deficit, Jurgen Klopp’s players seemed to be tripping over their own feet, as if the score in the corresponding game last season had entitled them to sleepwalk in the first home game.

As juxtapositions go, this was the opposite of what happened at Stamford Bridge six days earlier, where Liverpool were dominant and calm until Mo Salah’s VAR foul turned an expected 2-0 lead into a inconclusive 1-1 draw.

Three goals and a red card later, and it looked a little more than scripted we might have imagined for the start of 2023/24, after 2022/23 ended with a run of seven wins and four draws in one unbeaten streak last 11 Premier League games.

Perspective and all while some of us are opting for the layer of emotional protection that comes with an “expect the worst and hope for the best” approach to our hopes this time around despite the transfer setbacks, I think there are reasons to be cheerful. A two-part renovation

Two-part rebuild

The midfield, which had long been the elephant in the Anfield dressing room – including during winning seasons in the Champions League and Premier League – has finally had its much-needed restart.

Partly planned, partly unexpected. Five out, three in as things stand, with the third of those newcomers arriving just over 24 hours before kickoff on Saturday.

It provided an uplifting but uncomfortable rejuvenation.

The numbers game is no doubt a concern, but it was tempered by the emergence of Stefan Bajcetic last season and the ground made up by Curtis Jones in the run up to that. Of the others we were able to keep, Thiago remains but will certainly stick to his average, missing at least a third of the season, while the decision on Harvey Elliott, which seemed to raise more questions than answers, is still largely undecided. his late appearance on Saturday.

The departures of James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain came as no surprise this summer, but the losses of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson were clearly not part of the script.

The latter two were certainly keen on their lucrative move east, but it was highly unusual for Liverpool to let them go without a replacement being found and secured.

The next great midfield duo?

Rightly or wrongly, Fabinho and Henderson provided Liverpool’s midfield base for a long time, with a revolving door system dictating who should play alongside them.

Demographics are changing dramatically. The departure of Henderson and Fabinho could very well do us.

The next great midfield duo?

You can’t help but be thrilled by the additions of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai who, together, offer us third eye vision and a force of nature that can mesmerizingly serve us for many years to come.

Mac Allister is perfect for Liverpool in theory. Cultured, intelligent and calm in possession, he worked out the angles in his head long before interacting with the ball. Potentially, after nearly a decade and a half of waiting, we may have finally found an heir for Xabi Alonso.

He had difficulties with the red card shown to him on Saturday, but even if it had been a yellow card it would still have been two yellow cards in the first two games.

Even if his sending off against Bournemouth were to be reversed, we will probably have to get used to his periodic suspensions over the next few months.

In Szoboszlai we find a player who seems to have everything you could want from a midfielder.

Power, pace, offensive spirit, no problem handling the dark arts when necessary, nose for goal, will to win, passion and dedication. An iron fist in a player’s velvet glove, it’s a joy to behold.

The missing piece?

Our latest signing, Wataru Endo, entered the fray shortly after Mac Allister’s departure on Saturday, and played his part in taking us to as serene a third endgame as we could have wished for with 10 men.

Strangely, Endo was canceled by a glass-half-empty caller on the Radio Merseyside phone as I was walking home, apparently for no better reason than the fact that it was about £95m cheaper than Caicedo would have stopped us.

Whether or not Klopp makes another midfield addition before the end of the transfer window, signing Endo could prove to be a smart move.

The departures of Henderson, Fabinho and Milner have seen much of the team’s experience disappear and the Japanese captain is able to make up some of the shortfall.

We’ll probably need a lot of that at Tyneside next Sunday in a game where we can’t afford to have Cody Gakpo in midfield.

Coming off a crucial win over Bournemouth, a fixture between trips to Chelsea and Newcastle next Sunday gives us an opportunity to make a statement if we can.

That goes for both Liverpool’s position and whether Eddie Howe and his players are raising doubts about how they feel about themselves and their chances this season.