On this week’s edition of The Redmen TV’s Expert Insight, Dan Clubbe is joined by Rhys from the popular YouTube channel Pythagoras in Boots.
Rhys is a former analyst for West Bromwich Albion, who decided to make the switch to YouTube, a decision which has paid off handsomely. His channel currently sits at 42,000 subscribers with over 3 million views! His knowledge and opinions are highly regarded and in our latest video on Redmen Plus he talks about Liverpool target Alexis Mac Allister.
It’s no secret that Liverpool are keen on adding Mac Allister to their armoury for next season, journalists have reported he is actively looking for a move away from Brighton this summer with many teasing that Merseyside is going to be his most likely destination. The World Cup winner has excelled this year for both Brighton and Argentina, so here’s everything you need to know courtesy of The Redmen TV and Rhys.
Rhys began by highlighting the attacking strengths that the 24-year-old possesses – his output of 33 goals in 209 senior appearances may not confirm Rhys’ description of an ‘undoubted goal threat’ but there’s much more to the Argentine’s data that meets the eye.
“Essentially, he’s a paradox. What I mean by that is he’s got a very high XG [expected goals]. So, he’s someone who’s clearly getting himself into goal-scoring opportunities. He’s got great movement in and around that box and he picks up good spaces almost like a Bruno Fernandes.”
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As a midfielder, Mac Allister’s primary duty isn’t just about scoring goals, especially in some of the positions Roberto De Zerbi has deployed him in this season, though he could add many more goals to his game if he was more potent in front of goal. The analyst went on to comment on the Liverpool targets flaws.
“From our analysis, we have seen that he gets a lot of shots on target, but he doesn’t gamble on really ripping the ball into that far post. The goal-scoring part of his game is still flourishing, and I think that there’s much more of that side of his game to come”
Reds’ boss Jurgen Klopp has gained a reputation for getting the best out of his players and moulding them into deadly finishers; Salah and Mane both became out-and-out goal scorers thanks to the German’s elite man management so it’s likely Mac Allister would also benefit from Klopp’s coaching.
Assists are another pivotal part of the game for a midfielder, Mac Allister as it stands only has two in the Premier League this season which came as quite a shock to me when doing research for the midfielder in preparation for this article. This figure was also justified by our guest analyst.
“One of the things we noticed is he’s not a Bruno or De Bruyne in terms that they are machine guns, constantly firing bullets into their forwards, whereas Mac Allister is more of an Iniesta.”
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“If you looked at Iniesta’s stats you would never think Iniesta was one of the greats of the game, but clearly if you watch Iniesta you can see he’s got an eye for unlocking the tightest of defences, this is one of many qualities Mac Allister possesses, but it’s almost as if he doesn’t want to use it”
Similarly to Iniesta, Mac Allister is fantastic in tight spaces and whilst under pressure. This attribute is priceless when it comes to playing in the Premier League due to its high intensity and high press nature. This especially suits the way Liverpool attack and invite pressure from their opponents in order the counterattack and unlock defences in just a handful of passes.
“He’s very rugged, low centre of gravity, the ball is like a string on his foot. We’re talking about someone who’s got over 60% dribble success, which is very high.”
Finally, for many years the Reds’ midfield has been billed as the engine room. Klopp expects his midfielders to cover considerable distances to help with both attack and defence, we’ve seen some midfielders struggle to adapt to this style of play. Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s Liverpool careers didn’t quite end the way most Liverpool fans expected. So what could they expect from Mac Allister in terms of his energy?
“Brighton moved Mac Allister from midfield position into an attacking midfielder. I think it’s safe to say that they noticed he didn’t quite have the legs to become a box-to-box midfielder. I don’t think he can be trusted in a high-level midfield role, I don’t think he moves across the grass quick enough.”
Alexis Mac Allister isn’t a shoo-in for The Reds, and his future is well and truly still up in the air. It will be interesting to see how the Argentine finishes the season amidst the speculation surrounding his future. We hope you enjoyed the detailed analysis from our guest and Redmen Plus members can catch the full video here.
Redmen Reacts
Personally, I think Mac Allister would be a shrewd acquisition for The Reds this summer, he’s a World Cup winner with a unique playstyle, which would inject a new form of threat into an ageing and increasingly predictable Liverpool side. He may need time to adapt there’s no doubt about that, similar to how Thiago had to adapt when he first joined the club from Bayern Munich in 2020, but given Klopp’s record of moulding good players into world-class operators, I would be confident of Mac Allister shining.
I also anticipate Klopp will be working tirelessly on some new tactics during the summer, to help his team compete with the dynamism of Manchester City at the hands of his rival Pep Guardiola. If I was to pick three for the summer they would be; Manuel Ugarte, Nicola Barella, and Mac Allister.
Let’s see what the summer has in store…
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