OPINION
There weren’t many positives to take from Liverpool’s Champions League opener on Tuesday as they crashed to a 2-0 defeat away at Napoli.
A controversial penalty and a late defensive mix-up allowed Fernando Llorente to put the icing on the cake for the Italian side as the Reds began their defence of the trophy in the worst possible manner.
There wasn’t much between the two sides, but Jurgen Klopp would have been hoping to get something from the game which has put them on the back foot in Europe already.
Spanish midfielder Fabian Ruiz was very impressive in the game at the San Paolo Stadium, dictating his side’s play and keeping possession with ease throughout the 90 minutes.
Liverpool were reported by Calciomercato in September to be challenging Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich to sign the 23-year-old, who has a contract until 2023 in Italy.
Ruiz completed 90 minutes in the victory over Liverpool, and Klopp will surely have been very impressed with the way he conducted himself in the heart of midfield.
The Spaniard completed 67 passes in the game, with a success rate of 91% according to WhoScored. What makes that stat more impressive is that Ruiz only attempted a single long ball – proving his ability to keep the ball on the ground and recycle possession with ease.
Napoli’s midfield man also helped disrupt the attacking flow of the Reds on a number of occasions in the game, completing two tackles and one interception according to WhoScored – stats that helped his side keep the pressure on the Liverpool midfield and defence.
With some of Europe’s biggest clubs reportedly interested in Ruiz, Napoli are surely facing an uphill battle to keep ahold of their midfield maestro.
Klopp will certainly have been impressed with the Spaniard, who ran the show for Napoli against Liverpool, potentially putting himself in the shop window for a future move to Anfield.
