It was Mikel Arteta who highlighted Liverpool's depth last weekend as Darwin Nunez scored twice late on to beat Brentford. “They made the subs and the subs had the impact and they managed to change the game. For us it was the opposite.”
Whatever your opinion of Arsenal, he has a point about Liverpool. Nunez's impact came in the same week that Diogo Jota came off the bench to score with his first touch to equalize at Nottingham Forest. Arne Slot's attacking options make the difference.
Jota's goal yielded one extra point, Nunez's two. But Jota has not started a Premier League match since suffering an injury against Chelsea in October, while Nunez's playing time has been limited. That's because Liverpool's starting trio has also been highly effective.
Luis Diaz has scored the breakthrough goal in five of Liverpool's Premier League victories. Cody Gakpo scored the equalizer at home against Brighton, Fulham and Manchester United. Mohamed Salah's contribution hardly needs to be mentioned.
No wonder that Italy international Federico Chiesa has to be patient. Salah is the star, but it is a rare luxury to have so many top strikers in their prime. Gakpo and Nunez are 25. Diaz and Jota are 28. Apart from Chiesa, the other five are also well established at the club.
They have all now scored at least 20 Premier League goals for Liverpool since the start of the penultimate season. For context, Arsenal have four such players: Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz. But no other team has more than two.
That will be just as important for Liverpool in the coming months as they will compete for four different trophies between now and the end of May. They are the bookmakers' favorites to win three and second favorites to win the FA Cup.
Achieving success in multiple competitions requires multiple options, the ability to select different teams and switch matches from the bench. Fortunately for Slot, if he can keep these attackers fit, there is no team better placed to deal with that situation.
Traore and Wilson's wing switch
Sometimes management masterpieces are created on the training ground. Others happen in the heat of the moment – and not always for the expected reasons. Adama Traore's goal for Fulham, which denied Leicester the match, was an example of the latter.
The substitute's side-footed volley that sealed the 2-0 win at the King Power Stadium came from the right flank, but Marco Silva had not positioned it there for that reason. Traore had come on for the ill Alex Iwobi at half-time and played on the left instead.
Silva then spent much of the first part of the half trying to get Traore's positioning right. When he asked the Fulham boss about this at the post-match press conference, he explained that he wanted Traore to follow right-back James Justin's forward runs.
“We had some specific situations for that player because we knew Leicester would try to attack with Justin on our right, which meant that if the ball was on the left we knew he would come all the way forward and arrive .sometimes in the box.
“We had some specific positions for Alex and then of course the player who came in would have to do the same. Adama was a bit confused at the beginning and couldn't do what we wanted. It was one of the reasons why we moved him to right changed.”
Harry Wilson took on the task. “We pushed Wilson to the left side because [Adama] wasn't able to do what we planned and if a player can't do that, of course you have to give him feedback or change it like we did and put him on the right side.”
Traore took the plaudits with his goal but it was Wilson, from the left, who picked him out, having previously scored Fulham's first goal. In total, Wilson created seven chances, more than the entire Leicester squad and more than all his own teammates combined.
It is also the most chances Wilson has created in a Premier League match in his career. His previous best? Those were the four chances he created against Ipswich a fortnight earlier. No wonder he was serenaded by the supporters from the field.
Since coming off the bench to score in the comeback win over Chelsea on Boxing Day, Wilson has been Fulham's standout player. “He performs at a very good level. On the ball and off the ball.” Silva counted on both aspects of his game on Saturday.
Ayari shines for Brighton
Some players come on stage, others take longer to emerge. After loan spells at Coventry and Blackburn last season, Yasin Ayari has quietly established himself in Brighton's midfield. His performance against Manchester United felt like a statement.
Ayari was outstanding in Brighton's 3-1 win at Old Trafford, and his partnership with 21-year-old midfielder Carlos Baleba put Fabian Hurzeler's side in control of the match in the second half. He's starting to get the credit he's due.
Brighton supporters chanted his name from the away side, appreciating his neat use of the ball, coupled with the obvious effort to quell United's attacks. What stood out was the maturity of the performance, which belied the Swede's inexperience.
When he put that to Hurzeler afterwards, he agreed with the sentiment. “I'm glad you asked this question because it's exactly the example,” he explained, highlighting the progress his midfield duo has made over the course of the campaign.
“They suffered or had bad experiences, Carlos and Yasin. We had a lot of giveaways during the season we were in the lead, and we did things that were not mature, that you cannot do if you want a Premier League game win and they really learned from it.”
Ayari's improvement was rapid, he covered the ground well and was always on the half turn to receive the ball. But his attitude caught Hurzeler's attention from the start. “Yasin is a player who always wants to do well. He has had a great pre-season,” he added.
“He has the attitude of always giving more than 100 percent, and with this intrinsic motivation you can achieve many things.
“And of course he has a great talent, he understands the game very well, he is good in tight spaces, he has a good first touch, he is good at scanning, and I think his improvement is visible, he is a great example for the Brighton & Hove Albion way.
“That's the direction we want to go, improving the young players with great potential, but at the end of the day it's always the players themselves. Yasin is a role model for trying to win and improve every day.” That improvement was clear against United.
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