At the start of the summer, most Liverpool supporters and observers would have identified three key areas of the team that needed addressing in the transfer market.
The obvious was a winger to effectively replace Mohamed Salah. In signing Bradley Barcola, Liverpool have done that but on the opposite wing.
Barcola, though, you could argue, is actually the replacement for Luis Diaz, who departed the year before.
Liverpool's glaring right-back issue
The next two positions that most supporters would have wanted to see addressed also revolved around the lack of replacing other previously departed legends.
Fabinho left Liverpool three years ago now, but still his role in midfield as a defence-first player hasn’t been replaced.
While Trent Alexander-Arnold left a year ago and no matter how hard he tries, Jeremie Frimpong simply isn’t a replacement, or even an actual right back.
Liverpool, though, have gone through the summer seemingly without any desire to add either a midfielder or a right-back, despite the clear need in each instance.
Arguably it’s at right-back which is the biggest issue, although both full-back positions are areas of major concern and this was highlighted in the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest - Andoni Iraola's first home game in charge.
Frimpong and Milos Kerkez were hooked in the 72nd minute, with Liverpool 2-1 down at the time.
Now, there are potentially several other reasons (not least youngster Trey Nyoni's impressive cameo in midfield) why Iraola’s team enjoyed their best 20 minutes of the game from that point on, but certainly a contributing factor was the full-backs being replaced.
Szoboszlai can learn like Milner - and become a better midfielder
Dominik Szobsozlai, as he was regularly last season, moved to right-back, immediately giving Liverpool a player who can actually put in a cross and also be defensively stronger than the player he was replacing.
The Hungarian might not necessarily like playing there, but Iraola could do far worse than have the same conversation Jurgen Klopp had with James Milner in 2016 in explaining how he wanted the midfielder to be his left-back for the season ahead.
A year later, Milner explained what he learned in the new position: “But at times you have to curb that and adapt to the match situation and maybe sometimes hold back a bit if the time of the game suits that. I think sensing danger early is the biggest thing to learn. When you play in midfield you’re obviously always switched on to defending.”
Those words about “sensing danger early” are incredibly timely, with Iraola’s pre-Nottingham Forest press conference featuring a very similar message when discussing his midfield’s need to find a balance after being caught out twice by Newcastle in the opening fixture.
“There are players that are very good, they’re smelling, ‘OK, there is real danger, I can’t take the risk of going (forward),” explained Iraola. “Now I think I have to stay’. “Recognising those situations is the job we have to do now.”
A season at right-back, then, would actually help Szoboszlai learn that side of his game and make him a better midfielder in future. That should be the message Iraola gives him in order to get the Reds’ No. 8 to buy into the role.
Would Szoboszlai particularly enjoy it? Probably not, but it’s about what’s best for the team, as Milner succinctly explained: “It’s about whatever’s best for the team and ultimately I just want to be out there playing games, contributing and helping this football club.”
And if Szoboszlai has designs on becoming Liverpool captain after Virgil van Dijk departs, then a selfless season at right back would show he puts the team first and give him a new understanding of the team and overall patterns of play.
Liverpool solve two issues with Szoboszlai role change
For Liverpool, they’d be getting a far more reliable outlet on the right, who can produce crosses like the one Szoboszlai did for Alexander Isak against Forest, which the £125 million man couldn’t get on the end of.
No Liverpool player had more touches, created more chances or made more accurate crosses than Szoboszlai against Forest.
He made three stat-recorded accurate crosses, while Frimpong and Kerkez made none between them. The duo attempted six, with none of them finding their target. It was a similar story against Newcastle the week before.
Of course, stats on crossing is pretty flawed, a player can produce a wonderful cross but if the forward doesn’t get on the end of it, it’s recorded as a failed cross.
The eye test tells us that Szoboszlai’s crossing was significantly better than Frimpong’s versus Forest. Of that there is no doubt.
He can also move inside more to create numbers-up situations in midfield, again more akin to Alexander-Arnold did.
Liverpool’s focus on signing attacking wingers for Iraola this summer has neglected the right-back and midfield positions, but moving Szobsozlai fixes both, at least temporarily.
If Iraola is serious about getting the best out of his squad, and Szoboszlai is serious about being a team player, it’s a change that would significantly benefit Liverpool this season.
