Jurgen Klopp has paid tribute to Liverpool’s “football doctor” Alexis Mac Allister, after he extended his fine run of form with a sensational display against Chelsea
After initially facing questions over whether he is suited to the holding role following a £35 million summer move from Brighton, the Argentine has gone from strength to strength in recent weeks.
And he put in arguably his best performance for the club yet in dominating the £220 million duo of Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez as Chelsea were beaten 4-1 at Anfield on Sunday.
Asked how pleased he is with Mac Allister’s performances of late, Klopp replied: “Very, I’m over the moon. Macca is just like a football doctor.
“[It’s a] wonderful story with the dad and the uncle, and the cousins and brothers are now all footballers and analysed games already as kids.
“The dad asked ‘what did you see in the game?’, and I cannot thank his father enough for that knowledge and education.
“Playing the position the way he plays is very, very special. Super smart and his contribution for all our play in possession is extremely important.”
The German went on, however, to emphasise that Liverpool’s lofty position in the Premier League table owes more to the work of the collective rather than individual contributions from the likes of Mac Allister.
He continued: “We had that, not for all the years since I’m here, but we had it in a few years where we were in good positions where everyone wants to write a book about an individual player and this is fantastic and this is fantastic.
“They are all good, they are all really, really good. That is why we are, in this moment in time, top of the table.
“This is the best league in the world and we are top of the table, what does that say? Are there any bad players in this team? No.
“It’s fine, I answer your questions but the job is not to reflect on what they did and how fantastic they are or how good looking they are on top of it.
“It is about us digging deep into the season, keep going, hold you breath, buckle up and go for it.
“That’s what we are here for with these fantastic players.
“One thing in each footballer’s life, it is always consistency. You want to see it again.
“Yes, that’s your potential, mix it up with attitude you will have quality again, again, again and then after the season we will see.
“But for the moment, the base is good, still to be extended, make sure we are in a good position for the run-in. And then we will see.”
