Jérémy Jacquet names ex-Man United player who inspired his £60m Liverpool move
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Jérémy Jacquet has been a revelation at centre-back next to Virgil van Dijk since joining from Rennes in the summer.Such has been his influence, the transfer of Ibrahima Konaté to Real Madrid has not even been mentioned by Liverpool or rival fans.The French 21 year-old has been welcomed with open arms by the Anfield faithful, and looks at home on the pitch in Liverpool red.He scored on his debut in a pre-season friendly against Como 1907, helped keep three clean sheets in the Premier League and has even impressed legendary French player and now national team manager, Zinedine Zidane.But Jacquet's recent interview might not please many Kopites however, after revealing he idolises former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba.Liverpool's number 5 admitted to Téléfoot:"“Paul Pogba has always been my role model, and he still is.""I used to watch him all the time.”"While on the surface this may not be music to most Liverpool fan's ears, it actually explains a lot about what has made Jacquet start to life in England so noteworthy.The centre-back's style of play is underlined by being a front-footed, aggressive and strong defender.Pogba, particularly at Juventus, was also incredibly talented in these aspects of the game. The French midfielder was also skillful, intelligent in how he used his body, and had an incredible eye for a pass.Not to mention he was able to score some incredibly aesthetic and long range screamers.
This wasn't as evident during his second stint at United, but at Juventus, Pogba was breathtaking. Jacquet has taken some of Pogba's skills into his own game.
The centre-back has been able to play some incredible line-splitting passes from defence, which can quickly put the opposition on the back foot.He has done it several times for Liverpool this season, and wasn't afraid to do it for France during the international break too. He is incredibly calm on the ball, strong and isn't afraid to play a variety of passes.While there is certainly more to the position that that, he definitely has the ability to develop into a versatile player.