OPINION
Real Madrid showed what a physical presence could do for a team in the Champions League final and it’s time that Liverpool had some bite to back up its bark.
While Sergio Ramos’ actions were unsavoury, to say the least, his collision with Loris Karius and Mohamed Salah showed that other teams were willing to risk the fury of the Reds to get ahead.
James Milner and Jordan Henderson are both capable of standing their ground and defending their teammates, particularly those vulnerable of being physically bullied by rough opponents, but the pair still aren’t intimidating enough.
Jurgen Klopp’s side must continue to take the high ground when it comes to playing the game fairly, however it doesn’t mean they don’t required a player capable of adding some bite to the team’s bark when an opponent tries to push their luck.
The mere presence of a player of that nature would cause the Reds’ opposition to be hasty about engaging in a physical battle, as they know it can backfire.
For example look at the effect Mousa Dembele and Victor Wanyama have in the Tottenham team, while sometimes their tackles are a little bit reckless, an opposition player is aware they could feel the wrath of those two beasts if they’re unfairly rough with anyone in Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
The Reds don’t currently have that type of player, with their most intimidating force being Virgil van Dijk but he tends to bring calmness to a team despite his 6ft 3in tall (Transfermarkt) stature.
However they soon will have when Naby Keita arrives at Anfield from RB Leipzig this summer.
The Reds previously confirmed in August, via a statement on their official site, that the central midfielder will join on July 1 2018 and he will soon back up the Merseyside giant’s bark.
Keita is going to cost £52.75million, according to the Liverpool Echo, and while he may be only 5ft 6in tall (as per Transfermarkt) he has a ferocious quality that if tamed just the right amount, will improve the Reds greatly.
The midfielder will need to tone down his behaviour just a little, he received four reds cards in the 2017/2018 campaign between club and country, but not to the degree where he isn’t an aggression presence.
With Keita in Klopp’s team, several teams will stop trying to make games against the Reds a physical encounter in order to avoid the midfielder’s wrath.
Therefore after desperately lacking a player to back up their bite, which was exposed against Real Madrid, the Reds will finally have a player who will see that they no longer lack in that department in the form of Keita.
