Sport
Dominik Szoboszlai was one of Liverpool’s best players as the Premier League table-toppers made a statement about their chances of winning the title with a 6-3 away win over Tottenham Hotspur. The Hungarian scored Liverpool’s third goal and set up their fifth. Szoboszlai produced a full showcase of his quality.
When Arne Slot was appointed as Liverpool’s new manager, many predicted that Szoboszlai would be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Dutchman’s arrival at Anfield. Slot’s Feyenoord teams always had elite level attacking midfielders and Szoboszlai looked set to develop into a key figure for the Reds.
Initially, though, Szoboszlai struggled to force his way into Slot’s strongest lineup. Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister were favoured at the base of the midfield with Curtis Jones catching the eye in an advanced role. Over time, though, Szoboszlai has proved himself as a tactical chaos merchant.
While Slot has has used the ‘heavy metal football’ approach that made Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool teams so compelling to watch, the Dutchman has given the Reds more patience in possession. Szoboszlai, however, gives Liverpool something different, as Tottenham discovered to their cost on Sunday.
Slot deployed Szoboszlai as an attacking midfielder on paper, but on the pitch he operated as a ‘False Nine’ at times. Tottenham’s defenders didn’t know whether to step out to mark the Hungarian or pass him on to a central midfielder. Ultimately, Szoboszlai caused all sorts of problems in between the lines.
Liverpool have more attacking variety than any other team in the Premier League right now and Szoboszlai helped facilitate Slot’s direct approach against Tottenham, winning a number of duels in the air as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk sent long balls forward from the defensive line. One long ball from Alisson Becker released Szoboszlai clean through on goal.
“I haven’t seen all of his performances [for Liverpool] because this is my first year and his second,” said Slot about Szoboszlai. “I just referred to the Man United game and I think he was outstanding over there as well. If you score so many goals, that’s always what stands out, but last week against Fulham, for example, if you look at the work-rate he did over there. It was a very good performance from him. I think it wasn’t his first great performance, but it was definitely one of his best.”
As things stand, Liverpool are running away with the Premier League title. They have a four-point lead at the top of the table, plus a game in-hand for good measure. It might already be too late for the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea to catch them with defending champions Manchester City out of the picture.
“Everyone is dreaming of this situation, but we have seen many times where teams have been in front of other teams,” said Szoboszlai of Liverpool’s current league position. “There are still six months to go. We want to be as far ahead as we can. No one expected Slot to start so well but he believes in the team and we believe in him.”
All areas of Liverpool’s team are functioning at a high level. They boast the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League with Mohamed Salah arguably in the form of his life. Slot has also remoulded Liverpool’s midfield with Gravenberch and Mac Allister forming a strong understanding in the centre of the pitch.
In Szoboszlai, though, Liverpool have a high-potential attacking difference maker who is still improving. The 24-year-old has the technical ability to play Slot’s possession-based game, but also the physicality to give Liverpool genuine thrust. Szoboszlai is the perfect player to bridge the gap between the Klopp and the Slot eras.
