Jürgen Klopp and Jörg Schmadtke are having to problem-solve at Liverpool right now, with the Reds navigating a vital transfer window after a dismal campaign in the Premier League. The midfield department in particular requires an upgrade, with Alexis Mac Allister joining earlier this week as the first new player through the door at Anfield this summer.
Klopp knows what he needs, but the transfer market is a fluid entity; situations are always changing and not every player is attainable or affordable. The German coach and his new sporting director are essentially spinning a number of plates at present, with a view to exploring every possible option on the table before making a decision.
Mason Mount was a target, but he now seems destined to join Manchester United, and Khéphren Thuram and Manu Koné are both said to be on Liverpool’s radar (via Sky Sports), but nothing concrete has emerged as of yet. It remains to be seen how the Reds will look next season, but it is interesting that fresh links have appeared with Benjamin Pavard, via Caught Offside.
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The Bayern Munich defender certainly doesn’t fit the bill of a midfielder who will transform Klopp’s weakest area, but upon inspection of what he would offer on Merseyside, he could solve a few problems due to the knock-on effect that his signature would have.
Pavard has experience as a right-back and as a center-back, which makes him a curious possible target. Over the course of the last two months, Klopp has adopted a new-look 3-2-5 shape with possession, which consists of right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold making inverted movements into the middle of the pitch to play next to Fabinho.
When the Scouse defender makes those inside movements, left-back Andy Robertson is forced to tuck inside next to Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté, as shown below. Rather than behaving like his usual self as an attack-minded full-back, the Scottish international has almost been restrained since the beginning of April, forming part of a back three far from goal.
“Of course, it changed his role slightly, that’s clear,” said Klopp recently, per the ECHO. “We cannot have one full-back in the center of the field and the other constantly high up on the left side. That’s difficult so Robbo has to judge the situations when he can be involved and when he can overlap.”
Liverpool has benefited from the structural change — Klopp’s men remain unbeaten in 10 games using the 3-2-5 — but it is a shame that Robertson has been harnessed on the pitch. The Scot has almost been put on a leash, but Pavard’s arrival from the Bundesliga could have an impact, as the Frenchman would permit Alexander-Arnold to make a permanent move into the engine room as a full-time midfielder.
With Pavard playing as a right-back for Liverpool and Alexander-Arnold in midfield, Robertson would be free to get forward and advance towards the final third. He is one of only three defenders in Premier League history to accumulate more than 50 assists in the competition, which is why it makes sense to give him a license to attack.
Pavard has the qualities to give Robertson that license, as he could do the tucking in alongside Van Dijk and Konaté to become a third center-back at times. He is now aged 27 and he hasn’t experienced the best time in Munich of late, but he would open up a number of tactical possibilities for Klopp.
With just two years left on his contract, it could make sense for the Bavarian club to sell him this summer, and Liverpool is said to be near the front of the queue. It would be a bold transfer for the Reds to say the least, but if there’s one man who should be in favor of the move happening, it is Robertson.