There is no gainsaying that Jurgen Klopp and his Liverpool side are having a poor season. The Premier League title is out of sight, the Carabao cup is gone and they will have to get a win at Molineux after they failed to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield to advance to the next round of the Fa cup and they have a date with Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.
Liverpool are also on the verge of missing out on Champions League football for the first time in Klopp’s era if they don’t turn a new leaf in the coming weeks.
A lot of reasons have been advanced for Liverpool’s shambolic form with the drop in form of Liverpool’s midfield being the loudest argument. Fans are calling for recruitment in this window but it seems Liverpool are ready to wait till the summer for further recruitment. Then, what next? How can Jurgen Klopp and his boys salvage something from this season?
Liverpool’s target between now and the end of the season will be to finish in the top four so that they will stand a good chance to land their primary targets, particularly Jude Bellingham. This is why Klopp must be ready to change his approach to get the best out of the players he has at the moment.
The 4-3-3 formation has been Liverpool’s primary formation under Klopp but due to their struggles this season, they have had to play 4-4-2 at times but none have been able to get Liverpool going. This is why they have to switch to a 4-2-3-1 formation as soon as possible and here is why.
The 4-2-3-1 formation allows Liverpool to build the team on its strongest department, which is the attack. While Darwin Nunez and Mohammed Salah have been misfiring in attack, Liverpool is still the only team with two players to have scored at least 10 goals in all competitions.
This formation allows Klopp to field his best attackers at the same time which means having more bodies in the attack. With Roberto Firmino set to return, Liverpool will be able to field new signings, Cody Gakpo, Salah, Nunez and Firmino at the same time. This will allow Liverpool to score more goals.
However, it must be noted that the success of this will depend on how clinical Liverpool’s forwards are in front of goal. But with the potential and proven track records, they have got, Liverpool forwards looks more likely to improve between now and the end of the season than the rest of their counterparts in other departments on the field.
When Liverpool start outscoring opponents, most teams would also be careful of coming all out against Klopp’s men which is something we have seen this season. Another reason why this formation is worth the risk is.
This new formation will also allow Fabio Carvalho and Harvey Elliot to play in their favourite positions. Carvalho can come in for Firmino to play behind the striker if the Brazilian needs a rest while Elliot who has been under a lot of criticism this season can get to play from the right-hand side of the attack which is his favourite position. With this and the return of Luis Diaz Diogo Jota and the availability of Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, Liverpool won’t have to worry about depth.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. While the call for Liverpool’s return to the old chaotic ways might sound crazy, it is a risk worth taking as Liverpool no longer have the energetic midfield end impenetrable defence to keep the opponent at bay. Of course,both the defence and the midfield will still have a role to play but the goal is to get the best out of Liverpool’s strongest department.
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