Mac Allister Is Flying But Liverpool Still Need A Midfielder

I enjoyed Wednesday night. I loved the win, I loved the energy, I loved seeing Liverpool pressing again and I thought there were some outstanding individual performances against Atletico Madrid. But after watching the game back and having a bit of time to digest it, one concern hasn’t gone away.

The midfield balance is wrong.

That doesn’t mean I think Alexis Mac Allister has been poor. Quite the opposite. I think he has been one of Liverpool’s best players this season. It doesn’t mean Dominik Szoboszlai isn’t doing enough either, because his work rate and influence have been excellent. And I’m certainly not putting this on Florian Wirtz, who I thought was brilliant against Atletico.

This is about numbers and profiles.

Liverpool are playing with two central midfielders behind Wirtz, then three attacking players ahead of them. When the press works, we can suffocate teams. When it doesn’t, there is an enormous amount of space for opponents to attack.

Better teams will punish us for that.

Liverpool Need An Extra Body In Midfield

My solution wouldn’t be some dramatic tactical revolution.

I’d like Iraola to consider a 4-3-3.

That means Wirtz playing a little deeper rather than as an outright number 10, with Mac Allister and another midfielder alongside him. You sacrifice a little attacking freedom, but you gain another body when Liverpool lose possession.

Right now, it sometimes feels like we have four forwards and two midfielders.

That’s the problem.

Atletico showed it at times. When they played through or around our press, they suddenly had space to work with. Alisson made an important save, the defence recovered well on other occasions, and ultimately Liverpool got the victory, but I don’t want us relying on recovery defending every week.

A 4-3-3 wouldn’t mean Liverpool suddenly become defensive.

Look at the speed we now have in attack. Bradley Barcola, Cody Gakpo, Alexander Isak, Victor Muñoz and Rio Ngumoha give Liverpool enough directness to hurt teams without constantly committing another player into the final line.

Wirtz can still get forward. He can still find those pockets. He can still support Isak.

He’d simply have more responsibility when Liverpool don’t have the ball.

And I genuinely think he’s capable of it.

Wirtz Is Not The Problem

I feel like I’ve spent half the season defending Florian Wirtz, but I’m going to keep doing it when I think the criticism is unfair.

He was excellent against Atletico.

The pressing, the distance he covered, the amount of dirty work he got through, the tackles and the way he made it difficult for Atletico to play out were all things that don’t necessarily end up on a highlights reel.

People look at the price tag and immediately demand goals and assists.

Of course I want those numbers too.

I’m not pretending Wirtz has been an eight or nine out of ten since arriving at Liverpool. If I was grading his season so far, he’s probably around a six.

But he’s improving.

Last season wasn’t good enough. No argument from me. This season, however, I’ve seen progress, and against Atletico I thought we got one of his best Liverpool performances.

The imbalance isn’t because Wirtz is lazy or because he can’t defend. It comes from Liverpool asking two midfielders to cover too much territory when four players are operating ahead of them.

That’s maths more than anything else.

The press is improving, but it still isn’t completely connected. There are moments where it feels like individual players are pressing rather than the entire team moving as one unit. Once that becomes more coordinated, maybe the 4-2-3-1 looks more secure.

Until then, I would rather give the midfield a little more protection.

Mac Allister Has Made Himself Undroppable

If you’re asking me who absolutely has to start in midfield right now, it’s Mac Allister.

I wasn’t certain which version of Macca we’d see this season after his drop-off last year, but he has been outstanding.

The aggression is back. The intelligence is back. The tenacity is back.

Against Atletico, he scored a fantastic goal and put in another performance that reminded everybody why Liverpool supporters fell in love with him in the first place.

And that brings us back to the contract conversation.

If Mac Allister keeps performing at this level, Liverpool have to offer him a new deal.

I can understand why the club might have hesitated after last season if the underlying numbers showed a significant decline. What I don’t understand is apparently allowing that uncertainty to exist without proper communication.

Tell the player where he stands.

If Liverpool wanted to see him rediscover his previous level before talking about an extension, fine. Explain it.

Because if he continues like this, the conversation becomes very simple.

You extend him.

He’s 28, he’s got plenty of top-level football ahead of him and allowing another important player to drift towards the final stages of a contract would be ridiculous.

Liverpool Still Need A Different Midfield Profile

Where I think Liverpool ultimately have to strengthen is with a bigger, more physical midfielder.

That doesn’t necessarily mean some old-fashioned number six who sits ten yards in front of the centre-backs and never crosses halfway.

I want an athlete.

Somebody powerful, mobile and aggressive. Somebody who wins duels, covers ground and allows the creative players around him to do what they’re good at.

Think about the profiles other top teams have had. Declan Rice. Rodri. The old Liverpool midfield with Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.

Liverpool don’t really have that player.

Mac Allister is competitive and intelligent, but he’s not physically dominant. Szoboszlai is an outstanding athlete, but he’s naturally forward-thinking. Ryan Gravenberch has the physical tools, although right now he looks a long way from forcing his way into the team after that dreadful cameo against Atletico.

I don’t want Liverpool selling Gravenberch to fund another midfielder either.

We’ve already lost Curtis Jones. Stefan Bajcetic has moved on. Wataru Endo could leave in the future. There should be space in this squad to add quality without sacrificing another useful midfielder.

I’d still love Lamine Camara.

I’ve made no secret of that.

Trey Nyoni deserves opportunities too. I would have no problem seeing him given minutes against Fulham or Tottenham in the League Cup because he might actually provide some of the balance this midfield currently lacks.

But longer term, Liverpool need another profile.

76% of people voting in my poll agreed that the midfield balance is currently a problem. I think they’re right.

The positive thing is that this feels fixable.

We’re not talking about a Liverpool team devoid of quality. We’re talking about a team with serious attacking weapons, a manager whose ideas I like and several players beginning to hit form.

Iraola now has to find the compromise.

Maybe that’s a permanent switch to 4-3-3. Maybe it’s something he uses against stronger opponents. Maybe the press eventually becomes so good that Liverpool can sustain the 4-2-3-1 without leaving those spaces.

What I do know is that the warning signs are there.

Atletico didn’t punish us enough.

Other teams will.