Brighton have what Liverpool want.
I’m not talking about Moises Caicedo or Alexis Mac Allister, though both midfielders have been linked with moves to Anfield over recent months. No, I’m talking about a well-balanced, functional midfield.
The Seagulls find themselves in eighth position in the Premier League, just a single point behind the Reds ahead of the clash at the Amex Stadium this weekend. Following the departure of Graham Potter, Brighton had a bit of a tricky period and new manager Roberto De Zerbi failed to win any of his first five matches in charge.
Since then, however, they have won four of their last six in the English top flight. De Zerbi moved away from the 3-4-3 system used by Potter and has put his stamp on things with a 4-2-3-1 shape.
Brighton's double pivot
Key to this is the double pivot in midfield. The midfield two act as a base for Brighton. It is a bit of a throwback to the middle-third pairings of the 2000s with both essentially acting box-to-box midfielders.
Mac Allister, for example, attempts 4.5 tackles and makes 1.4 interceptions per 90 minutes (FBRef). Caicedo chips in with 3.5 attempted tackles and matches the Argentine for interceptions. Both average around 51 passes per 90 and have a similar pass completion rate of 85%.
De Zerbi hasn’t had Mac Allister at his disposal over recent weeks following his involvement at the World Cup. He returned for the FA Cup tie against Middlesbrough, coming off the bench at half-time and scoring twice in the 5-1 win.
During his absence, the Italian tactician used Pascal Groß alongside Caicedo. Despite being known for his guile and offensive traits, the 31-year-old pulls his weight defensively and has attempted 2.4 tackles per 90 this term.
This highlights the fact the Seagulls have a clear plan in mind. Instead of individuals, they identify profiles that marry well with their philosophy. It means they aren’t overly reliant on certain players and can play the same system even if key players are missing.
Another thing Liverpool want and desperately need.
The Reds have flirted with the idea of a two-man midfield for the best part of four seasons now. They often use a variation of a 4-4-2 for a brief period before reverting back to Jurgen Klopp’s tried and tested 4-3-3.
Links to Aurelien Tchouameni, Matheus Nunes, Jude Bellingham, Enzo Fernandez and Caicedo seem to suggest the long-term plan is to use a double pivot at Anfield. All have thrived in a two-man midfield. All can play as box-to-box midfielders.
Liverpool switched to a 4-4-2 earlier in the campaign and it was with this system that they beat Manchester City at Anfield. Fabinho partnered Thiago in midfield and the duo did enough to nullify Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan, with City playing a box midfield made up of the four.
After a few matches, Klopp shifted to a 4-diamond-2 and this culminated in a 2-1 loss to Leeds United at Anfield at the end of October. Following that, the Reds went back to the 4-3-3.
Results may have improved but performances haven’t. Liverpool haven’t kept a clean sheet in the Premier League since mid-October and they have conceded a goal six consecutive matches across all competitions.
Following the loss to Brentford, Klopp defended his midfield, saying: “ Only midfield? It’s a general problem not a midfield problem. Defending starts up front. If you don’t defend from there, then the midfield have no chance. Balance might be a problem now. Brentford’s goals didn’t come from a ball through the midfield.”
The former BVB boss then said his side didn’t win enough challenges against Wolves. “In the whole game we didn’t win enough challenges, to be honest,” Klopp told reporters.
“They win a challenge and all of a sudden we are completely open, how is that possible? We have two or three players in a challenge, moving toward the ball. When you are there, you have to win the ball, if you don’t do that and they get out, it looks like ‘eh, where are they?’.
“Whoever you play, you have to win challenges. It’s something I already mentioned in the dressing room and I will mention it again.”
Fabinho and Jordan Henderson won a combined two of their eight duels against Wolves and made just a single tackle between them. Thiago won five of his six tackles and seven of his 12 duels.
Liverpool midfield unreliable
Liverpool don’t have a solid or reliable base in midfield.
If you compare those numbers to those posted by Brighton’s midfield away to Boro, it is night and day. Groß and Caicedo won a combined 88% of their duels while Mac Allister came off the bench and won 75% of his.
Granted, it was a completely different game for Brighton against a Championship side, they had the same amount of possession as Liverpool did against Wolves (65%).
Whereas the Reds had sterile possession as a result of the visitors dominating the space and dictating where the hosts could and couldn’t play, Brighton dominated the ball and the space. They were able to do that because their midfield won their duels and gave them a platform to stamp their authority on proceedings.
It goes some way to explaining why Brighton have a better defensive record this season in the Premier League. De Zerbi’s men have an expected goals against total of 23.8, a figure only five teams can better.
Liverpool, on the other hand, have an xG against total of 28.7. Only six teams have a higher total this season.
What makes this even more impressive is that Brighton lost a number of first team players in the summer, with Marc Cucurella, Yves Bissouma and Neal Maupay all departing.
They reinvested half of the money and now look a better team. Potter also left after an impressive start to the campaign and took a number of his coaching team with him to Chelsea.
Despite this - player losses, managerial changes and a system switch - Brighton have remained consistent with their approach. In having to evolve to bed in new players, Liverpool exposed their midfield unit and haven’t been able to protect that part of the team since.
If the Reds had a well-balanced, functional midfield, they would be in the title race. They don’t, though, so are in a battle for a top-four spot. One they are currently losing.
