How Mac Allister has embraced role as Liverpool's chief destroyer

Adrian Clarke looks at key tactical points and players who can be influential in Matchweek 22.

Player analysis - Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool)

A midfield masterclass last time out has surely put Liverpool’s Mac Allister in confident mood ahead of a home match against fast-improving Chelsea.

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The Argentinian was outstanding in the Reds' 4-0 win at AFC Bournemouth, winning 14 duels and three interceptions, while also making 15 ball recoveries, nine tackles and four key passes.

Swarming all over the pitch with intensity off the ball, and calmness on it, Mac Allister laid the platform for a handsome away success.

"Absolutely exceptional performance, I have to say," Jurgen Klopp said of his midfielder's display at Bournemouth. "I'm so happy for us, obviously, but for him as well. He's a really good footballer, let me say it like that.

"Defensively [he] did a good job and offensively he is anyway a super-important player for us. He was calm on the ball, all the good things in the first half already happened with him." 

Mac Allister highlights v Bournemouth

It is a timely boost as Chelsea’s expensively-assembled midfield of Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez and homegrown star Conor Gallagher has clicked into gear in recent weeks.

To win this key battle at Anfield, Mac Allister may need to replicate the high levels he showed against Bournemouth at the base of Klopp’s midfield.

As shown on the chalkboard below, the former Brighton & Hove Albion star covered plenty of ground against the Cherries, competing with extraordinary aggression to regain the ball in different areas of the pitch.

One of the standout qualities Mac Allister exuded at Vitality Stadium was a desire to make 10-yard sprints to disrupt players who were about to take possession of the ball.

Refusing to let them settle, he consistently applied pressure and forced a string of mistakes.

Below, he tackles Justin Kluivert, who was made to pay for a loose touch, and it sprung a Liverpool attack.

And here, Mac Allister anticipates a risky crossfield pass to make a wonderful interception inside the Cherries' half, leading to a shot on goal.

If Chelsea are loose in their decision-making inside the middle third, Mac Allister will create transitions that could hurt Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

Mac Allister has spent most of his career playing in a more advanced midfield role, but he has taken to his defensive duties with relish this season.

Happy to sacrifice his attacking instincts, the FIFA World Cup winner has adopted the mantle of chief destroyer, allowing team-mates Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones and Ryan Gravenberch to push forward.

Out of possession, as indicated in the table below, the Liverpool midfielder has statistically outshone Caicedo, Fernandez and Gallagher in most defensive departments, showing tremendous enthusiasm to spring turnovers.

Mac Allister v Chelsea midfielders 23/24

From a tactical perspective it is also handy for Klopp - who this week announced he would be leaving the club at the end of the season – to have a player as adaptable as Mac Allister in his starting XI.

At any given moment he can push Mac Allister into a more offensive position, knowing the midfielder has the guile and quality to unlock opposition defences too.

For the visit of Chelsea though, and on the back of such a stellar display in his last Premier League match, Mac Allister’s primary job will be to stifle the Blues' midfield threat in this crucial encounter.

It is a task that does not come as naturally to him as others, but Liverpool supporters know he will tackle it, quite literally, with full commitment.

Club News Liverpool v Chelsea: Team news External Link

Liverpool v Chelsea: Team news

Liverpool are set to be bolstered by the return of Alexis Mac Allister when they host Chelsea in the Premier League on Wednesday night.

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