Liverpool gambled on Jacquet and it is paying off
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The ease with which he has adapted to playing for Liverpool has been impressive and even surprised senior figures at the club.Liverpool great Alan Hansen, who watching on at Anfield on Sunday, would surely have taken satisfaction from Jacquet's display.Since arriving at Anfield, Jacquet has started every game in the Premier League and Champions League, playing more minutes (956) than any player at Liverpool bar Alisson (990) this season.The transition is even more remarkable considering he spent most of the year recovering from injuries, having sustained a broken shoulder in February followed by a knee problem in the summer. Jacquet did not play a minute of Liverpool's summer tour to the United States and made his debut in a pre-season friendly against Como, when he scored at Anfield just a week before the Premier League started.After the departure of Ibrahima Konate to Real Madrid, Liverpool had a space to fill at centre-back alongside Virgil van Dijk and given the injury struggles of Joe Gomez and Giovanni Leoni, Jacquet got the nod the following weekend at Newcastle.A trip to St James' Park for a first Premier League experience is quite the task and, despite conceding early on, it was an encouraging display in which Jacquet played more accurate passes and successful final-third passes than any other player in the first half.Losing to Manchester City and Erling Haaland was a timely reminder of the challenges ahead but, on the whole, he has excelled.
Very, very good," said Zidane, when he was asked about Jacquet's performance against Italy earlier this month. He lives in Liverpool and spends a lot of his time with fellow youngsters including Rio Ngumoha and Trey Nyoni, and those at the AXA Training Centre say he is mature and confident off the pitch, just like he is on the pitch.Having two experienced figures in Van Dijk and Araujo either side of him on the field has certainly helped but in the space of a few months, Jacquet has made himself one of the first names on the teamsheet.He went off early in the first few games as he worked built his fitness up but there are no such concerns any more."Our relationship is good.
It takes games especially but also training sessions and conversations off the pitch," said Van Dijk, 35, who is the only Liverpool defender to ever cost more than Jacquet."There's good moments and not, but it's how we react and help each other and you can see the partnership coming along."He's doing very well. I don't think he's there yet so let's keep going."