How a Sporting transfer and Ruben Amorim may elevate a Liverpool star to new heights

How a Sporting transfer and Ruben Amorim may elevate a Liverpool star to new heights
WhoScored.com: The current front-runner for the Anfield job is Portuguese manager Ruben Amorim, and several of his star players would be a strong fit for Liverpool as well.

Xabi Alonso said last Friday that he would stay on at Bayer Leverkusen past the summer.

Due to his exceptional performance at the BayArena, the 42-year-old Spaniard was being watched by both Liverpool and Bayern Munich, indicating his high demand. Alonso has opened up a 13-point lead at the top of the table with seven games remaining, putting Bayer on pace to win their first-ever Bundesliga championship.

That means that both Bayern and Liverpool must start over. Though Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim is the front-runner for the former position, Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi has emerged as a possible contender for both of the major European competitions.

The Reds will be hoping to entice the 39-year-old to Anfield in the summer, even though Barcelona has also been keeping a close eye on Lisbon as they intensify their hunt for Xavi’s replacement in Catalonia.

Amorim is no new to the tabloids in Britain. The Portuguese manager was being connected to Tottenham and Chelsea, respectively, before to Ange Postecoglou and Mauricio Pochettino’s appointments. Amorim’s inevitable acquisition by one of the more illustrious English teams appears to be on the horizon; this summer appears to be the ideal time for the Portuguese manager to move from Liga Portugal to the Premier League.

Amorim is a good fit for Liverpool’s offensive coach position as they want to continue Jurgen Klopp’s excellent work on Merseyside. First off, despite playing one fewer game than other teams in Portugal’s top division, Sporting has scored at least 16 more goals (77) than any other team.

This season in Liga Portugal, they are third in terms of shots per game (16.8) and critical passes (12.9). Although the team leading the league should lead these measures, they only see the ball 58.7% of the time, which is less than championship contenders FC Porto and Benfica. As such, a slight decline is projected.

Instead, Amorim employs a pressing strategy with a lot of energy that is comparable to Klopp’s. They have, in fact, won possession in the offensive third the third-most (156) times in the division, more than any other player, led by star striker Viktor Gyokeres (40).

The formation that the two use is the clear distinction between the German and Amorim. The full-backs push forward to extend the play when the wingers cut infield from their respective flanks, according to Klopp’s preferred 4-3-3 formation. Instead, Amorim favours a three-man defence to give the wing-backs more room to operate freely up and down the pitch.

This means that Sporting’s front three is narrower than Liverpool’s, with a third center-back replacing the midfielder. Undoubtedly, the attack-minded full-backs that Liverpool has on its roster would gain from this strategy.

For instance, over the past 12 months, Trent Alexander-Arnold has frequently moved into midfield, giving the 25-year-old the freedom to utilise his offensive potential. By starting higher up the pitch, this would play to the England international’s strengths. Most importantly, Alexander-Arnold would have defensive cover from another center-back, which would assist hide his deficiencies off the ball.

To make sure the defence can develop attacks from the back the same way Sporting does, he would need the appropriate centre backs. As the centre backs try to play the ball to help break the lines, it’s no accident that Goncalo Inacio (73) and Ousmane Diomande (70.7) rank second and third, respectively, for passes per game in Liga Portugal this season.

While Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Allister, and Curtis Jones provide Liverpool with the technical midfielders ready to receive the ball from the centre backs and spread the play wide, this does primarily rely on the central midfielders dropping deeper to receive possession.

Therefore, it’s possible that Amorim prioritises defence during the off-season in anticipation of a raid by his old team. In recent months, Inacio and Diomande have both surfaced as possible center-back targets for the Reds. With Amorim’s appointment, it’s possible that one of the defenders will follow the Portuguese manager to Anfield in order to assist the Sporting manager in implementing his playing philosophy.

Even if Alonso was the choice to replace Klopp, it makes sense that he would want to finish his study in comfortable surroundings, just like Amorim did.

Like Klopp, the latter is skilled at forming intimate bonds with his players, and this would help Amorim win over the Liverpool supporters fast. He might just turn out to be the perfect boss to carry on the German tradition.