I’m really intrigued that Dominik Szoboszlai played Right Back (RB) in the Liverpool v Stoke City behind closed-doors friendly on Sunday. Arne Slot had 2 RBs available and plenty of youngsters, so this was definitely not a case of needs must. Personally, I’m very much on board with this experiment and would like to see it with my own eyes in a full match.
I think Slot is one of the top students of the game. That is how I see his personality. Ever the analyst of top performing teams and what attributes he could instill in his team.
If I look at Paris Saint-Germain, there is no doubt that Achraf Hakimi is a huge part of how they play, but there are very few players if any with the skill set of Hakimi. The energy, the speed the technicality. Maybe Bradley comes close, maybe Frimpong comes closer, but I think Szoboslai comes closest with even some advantages of strength and height.
I think Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch are a settled duo for the holding midfield. Florian Wirtz, looks like the plan to be the CAM so far. That puts Szoboszlai on the bench. Something I’m a little uneasy about to be honest given how much he brings to the team and the quality / potential he has.
Don’t get me wrong, it would absolutely be a kick in the gonads for Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley, but if Szoboszlai could learn the RB role to good effect, he could be absolutely lethal there. Crazy energy, versatile for almost any hybrid role you want, bags of pace, great cross, can whip across a ball when shooting from that angle, adds height to defence, has understanding built with Salah, has inside knowledge of what the forwards are doing that could perhaps help him.
I genuinely think there’s a possibility that he could be a revelation there if he could learn the defensive side of the RB role, which I think he could. So like I said, not great for Bradley or Frimpong, but I’m well on board with this experiment by Slot. Eager to see more, please.