Alexis Mac Allister, a midfielder for Liverpool, displayed his endurance during Sunday’s victory over Nottingham Forest.
Biting into tackles and controlling play, Mac Allister was outstanding in his typical deeper-lying role against Forest.
And the display demonstrated everything that the Argentine is all about, including an insatiable engine, according to former Reds striker Neil Mellor. After the match at Anfield, Mellor gave an appreciation speech to LFCTV for Mac Allister.
The 40-year-old said, “Having over 700 passes in this game shows just how much control Liverpool had.”
“Alexis is a very brave player as well as a very clever player. During the game, he clocked the longest distance for Liverpool.”
“He was amazing; his influence was evident; you need players who can thwart a counterattack and then want to make that pass in between the lines.”
Mac Allister assuming his position
Jurgen Klopp’s usage of Mac Allister as a deeper-lying midfield player this season has received a lot of attention.
If this is the position the Liverpool boss envisaged the 24-year-old playing after acquiring him from Brighton, that would certainly come as a surprise.
Rather, it’s probable that Klopp intended to use Mac Allister and Dominick Szoboszlai to play higher up the pitch while keeping Fabinho around for an additional season.
Even so, as the team’s designated holding midfielder, Liverpool’s No. 10 has appeared in all but one of the Reds’ Premier League games thus far.
He has, for the most part, done a great job getting to know the expectations of a new team and role.
However, it makes sense that there have also been a few teething issues.
Sunday’s match against Forest was maybe the first concrete indication that Mac Allister is starting to address those early problems. The World Cup winner performed brilliantly and purposefully throughout the match, even if it wasn’t the hardest one he would play all season.
Mac Allister’s appropriateness for this position against the better aspects of the divide is still up for debate. However, he reiterated this past weekend exactly how excellent of a signing he has been. There will be more.
