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There have been many standout performers amongst the Liverpool squad under the stewardship of Arne Slot this campaign, but perhaps there is one that hasn’t been rewarded with the heaps of credit they deserve.

Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo have become the main profiters of Arne Slot’s time at the club up to now, but Dominik Szoboszlai is integral to this Liverpool team.

We will be discussing why the Hungarian playmaker should be considered one of the Reds’ most important players and the unsung hero of the success season so far.

A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT

Throughout his Liverpool career, Dominik Szoboszlai has come under scrutiny for being unable to unlock his full potential, despite a promising start.

A sudden lack of confidence occurred over Christmas 2023.

Many of Szoboszlai’s known attributes such as his passing, decision-making and effectiveness in the final third seemed to have disappeared and this continued for the remaining six months of the campaign, leading to supporters questioning the £60m price tag.

But, the midfielder has now appeared to have rediscovered his form from the beginning of last campaign, growing in importance for Liverpool as the season has went on.

Szoboszlai has now matched last season’s overall goal involvement tally of twelve in ten less games (6G, 6A).

MORE THAN JUST NUMBERS

Dominik Szoboszlai is a technically-gifted footballer.

For a long period, have Liverpool supporters pleaded for him to add more goals and assists to his game, but he offers so much more than this.

Szoboszlai’s work-rate is what makes him a cut above for Arne Slot.

The determination to lead from the front and sustain a press on the opposition sets a tone that must be sustained for ninety minutes, or at least close to.

He employs an intensity that can suffocate the opposition, a term best described when in conversation about Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool, but Slot has implemented his own take on this which has delivered the best from Szoboszlai.

Slot’s Liverpool may not have the ‘heavy-metal’ element, but a far more controlled approach seems to suit the Hungarian better.

LIVERPOOL’S PRESSING MACHINE

The word that can be best associated with Dominik Szoboszlai is relentless.

Over the course of the season, Szoboszlai is one of only eleven players in the Premier League to make at least 200 final third pressures and 300 in the middle third, which further enhances his importance.

Against Manchester City, the midfielder scored Liverpool’s second goal that proved to be the winner and was seen falling to the ground come the final whistle.

Dominik Szoboszlai celebrates extending Liverpool’s lead to two against Manchester City.

Getty Images.

This was due to exhaustion following the tireless shift he had just produced for ninety minutes and more.

Szoboszlai worked his socks off from the get-go, running further than any other Liverpool player at 11.5 kilometres and this was particularly valuable due to how much time his side spent without the ball.

Arne Slot’s side managed 34% possession at the Etihad Stadium, a season low so far, and Liverpool’s lowest ever in a Premier League game that they have went on to win, since Opta records began?

(2003-04)

Liverpool’s number eight disrupted any bit of rhythm that Manchester City were trying to muster up with pressing and the closing down of multiple channels, whenever the ball arrived in the Reds’ third of the pitch.

He also worked brilliantly with Curtis Jones as the pair were alternating roles over the course of the ninety, with Slot’s decision to play without a recognised centre-forward, working to perfection.

Dominik Szoboszlai is the heartbeat of the team.

A work-horse who sets the example for the must-haves of an Arne Slot midfielder.

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