Michael Owen implied that Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain should not be viewed as a regular starter by Jurgen Klopp.
The former Reds forward suggested that the attacking midfielder, who earns £120,000-a-week at Anfield (Source: Spotrac), doesn’t suit Liverpool’s system and he could unbalance the team if permanently in the side.
Owen added that Liverpool having attacking full-backs in the side, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alex Robertson, but noted they’re only allowed to gamble pushing up the pitch as the current first-choice midfield don’t venture forward like Oxlade-Chamberlain.
“Yeah it is,” said Owen on BT Sport 3 (19:33, Tuesday, November 5th).
“I mean Liverpool’s midfield are very efficient, I seem to be using that word a lot tonight, but they are an efficient midfield, and none of them really, are similar to Oxlade-Chamberlain, he can come on and change things.
“But whether the way Liverpool play will suit Chamberlain playing permanently…we all know how attacking their full-backs are, but that’s mainly due to that midfield being solid as a rock.
“If you suddenly let one go forward, and he’s running past the strikers, yes it might be a bit more attractive but the full-backs then can’t gamble.
“So it may knock the balance of the team, but as an alternative, it’s great to see as he does have something different.”
OPINION
It’s rather harsh of Owen to effectively condemn Oxlade-Chamberlain to being nothing more than an impact player, as that is what he effectively does. After all the former Reds attacker is pretty much saying if the 26-year-old starts, then Liverpool’s effective style of play will crumble around him. However, Oxlade-Chamberlain is surely flexible and can adapt. Granted the midfielder does seem to love venturing forward, he has scored three goals and averaged a goal every 79 minutes (Source: BBC Sport), but that doesn’t mean he is naive to tactics. If Jurgen Klopp ordered Oxlade-Chamberlain to keep the club’s shape in midfield, he would. Also, you feel the German manager knows the midfielder is more than capable of being a starter, based on the games he has previously used him in. The Reds boss opted to play Oxlade-Chamberlain against Manchester City in the club’s big three clashes with them in the 2017/18 season, so surely that says something? In those games, the attacking midfielder scored twice, while assisting one goal, and while he may have had a serious injury in between those games and now, it’s hard to see how he doesn’t work in Liverpool’s current system. Just because he is a different shaped cog, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t fit.
