Why Jurgen Klopp Should Change Liverpool Midfielder For Southampton

Manchester City wins, so Liverpool has to answer again. Pep Guardiola's men won Wednesday night a 2-0 win over Cardiff at Etihad, allowing the Reds to take first place in first place.

As a result, Jurgen Klopp's team must continue to win so that the pressure at the top is maintained, with a future trip to Southampton on the list.

The former club Virgil van Dijk has won his last two matches. One of those wins was beaten by one of the league's heavyweights in Tottenham, Mauricio Pochettino. Given this, the opposing team in question will certainly be competitive Friday night and Liverpool will have to find a way to win, as has been the case in his two recent matches.

Against the Spurs and Fulham, however, the Klopp team relied on late luck elements rather than controlled domination. A last-gasp penalty James Milner, followed by a goal from Toby Alderweireld, secured the win, rather than a way to win more lasting and convincing.

So, to make sure nothing is needed against Southampton, let's look at the tactical aspects ahead.

How Hbadenhuttl has changed

First, it is important to note that Southampton is now under a new regime, since Ralph Hasenhuttl took the reins in December. The Austrian was referred to as "Alpine Klopp" because of the tendencies they share, as well as vaguely similar play styles favored by both men.

The Hasenhuttl team is brave and aggressive, but she's not naive. This concerns some pressing sides that simply launch into the ground, chasing shadows and being opened by high caliber opponents. In the face of high-quality opposition, it is not as easy as to support with ferocity, because the level of the enemy players involved allows them to remain unscathed and to be able to play difficult moments.

Therefore, faced with teams as strong as Liverpool, the Hasenhuttl team will often refrain from putting pressure on Alisson, van Dijk and Joel Matip, shown below against the Spurs.

As the picture above shows, Southampton is ready to give up because time is running out. However, the moments in which Southampton presses can have an impact on the selection of Jurgen Klopp's team, especially in midfield.

The most notable feature of Southampton's urgent approach is that it incorporates counter-pressing. This basically means that whenever Southampton loses the ball, rather than falling back into a defensive form, as do most teams, the Hasenhuttl team immediately rushes to the ball as a unit for recover it quickly, in order to score.

This often results in momentary pressure on the ball, but this pressure is intense and players have very little time and space to act, as shown in the following example.

In the graph below, Christian Eriksen just controlled the ball from Southampton's kick but noticed the position of the Hasenhuttl players and their position to head for the ball rather than retreating.

Then Eriksen goes to Eric Dier and this is the trigger for the Southampton players to squeeze him immediately, as shown below.

The move worked, Dier panicked and finally gave him the ball.

These moments, alongside the stubborn prowess of James Ward-Prowse, should be Klopp's two greatest preoccupations before the trip to St. Mary's.

How can Liverpool overcome this threat?

The answer is by introducing players who are described as "press-resistant". These are players who are capable in tight spaces, because they are able to control, dribble and compose with little time, despite pressure from the opposition.

When evaluating Liverpool midfielder options, three of them demonstrated this trait, namely Naby Keita, Gini Wijnaldum and Fabinho.

In the case of Keita, this is perhaps one of his most outstanding qualities because he is just not influenced when it is closed, with the incident described below against Crystal Palace earlier in the season.

As for Wijnaldum, he may be less technical than Keita, but he is able to use his body to prevent opposing players from accessing the ball. The example below against Manchester United highlights his talent, since he recognizes the pressure of Ander Herrera, but uses his body and strength to escape.

As for Fabinho, he does not dribble and does not use his body excessively, but he is much more composed when he is closed than Jordan Henderson or James Milner.

S addressing Goal recently, Pep Ljinders described Fabinho as a "lighthouse", before recalling that his calm has added another dimension to the team's midfield.

Moreover, in addition to the defensive advantages provided by the press-resistant players, there are also offensive advantages to take into account.

If Southampton decides to press the ball in any of the above times and Liverpool manages to get around it, excessive free space becomes available, as shown below.

In the end, given Southampton's eagerness to create moments of pressure, it would be logical for Klopp to opt for midfielder Keita, Fabinho, Wijnaldum.

However, these three players started only once as a trio and twice with Keita as a player on the left, so it is unlikely that the Liverpool boss opted for all three.