Jeremie Frimpong’s most obvious quality, the aspect of his game which slaps any spectator across the face as soon as they get a glimpse of this blur on the pitch, is his blistering pace.
If the jet-heeled Bayer Leverkusen departee hit top speed in a residential area, he would get a speeding ticket. Quite literally—he’s been clocked at 22.6 mph this term. The capacity to repeatedly hare forward on these concussive raids is arguably even more impressive, only one player in the Bundesliga recorded more individual sprints than Frimpong.
Yet, Arne Slot will be just as enamoured by Frimpong’s versatility as his velocity. A right back with attacking instincts has played on the left flank and even popped up as an attacking midfielder on occasion. This creates a number of intriguing options regarding his deployment at Liverpool, now that his signing has been confirmed.
Conor Bradley Competition
The most obvious solution may very well be the one Slot selects. Trent Alexander-Arnold is making his way out of Anfield to the soundtrack of boos and has—ostensibly—been replaced by another right back.
Conor Bradley has been very publicly billed by Liverpool’s boss as Alexander-Arnold’s natural successor in that position, with Slot’s verbal backing supported by a new contract for the 21-year-old. The talented Northern Ireland international has many qualities, but durability is not yet one of them.
Since making 44 appearances on loan at Bolton Wanderers in the third tier two years ago, Bradley is yet to amass more than 17 starts in a single season for Liverpool. Over the past couple of seasons, the prodigious right back has missed more than 230 days through injury. Frimpong will undoubtedly help balance Bradley’s workload while providing an experienced option in his potential absence.
Attacking Outlet
“We always say Jerry can’t shoot at all,” Frimpong’s Bayer Leverkusen teammate Robert Andrich once laughed, “but he has scored a lot of goals.”
Frimpong has found the net 22 times over the previous three top-flight seasons, just one fewer than Liverpool’s Diogo Jota can boast during the same period. The buccaneering outlet was given freedom to rampage down the right flank as part of Xabi Alonso’s back three system and has sporadically been deployed as an out-and-out winger.
In the buildup to Frimpong’s arrival reports from Germany claimed that Liverpool viewed their first summer recruit as an option on the right wing. What this means for Mohamed Salah remains to be seen.
The remarkably durable forward scarcely misses a minute. After dropping the similarly ever-present Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool’s bench for a dead-rubber against Brighton & Hove Albion on Monday night, Slot was asked why Salah retained his spot in the starting XI. “I think I could’ve expected a knock on my door,” the Dutchman grinned, “so to prevent that from happening I just put him in the team.”
There could, however, be a way to get Bradley, Salah and Frimpong in the same starting XI.
Formation Change
A 3-4-3 formation would allow Bradley to tuck in at right centre back, restore Frimpong to his favoured position at wing back and nudge Salah closer to goal as part of the front three. Yet, this would represent quite a significant leap in tactical approach for all involved (aside, of course, from Frimpong).
Liverpool as a football club are synomous with a back four. When Sir Bobby Robson was relentlessly asked about his reluctance to move away from a 4-4-2 formation by Pete Davies in All Played Out, he cited Liverpool as the golden example of how to excel with four defenders. His case wasn’t helped by the club’s subsequent 30-year wait for a league title, but the back four has persisted.
Slot doesn’t have a long record of playing with three centre backs either. The former Feyenoord and AZ Alkmaar boss has used a back three exactly once during his last 261 games in management.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Liverpool Could Line Up With Jeremie Frimpong.
