Jeremy Doku’s insane stats vs. Liverpool – and why Pep Guardiola still got it wrong

Jeremy Doku’s insane stats vs. Liverpool – and why Pep Guardiola still got it wrong
If one were to look solely at the stats, Jeremy Doku enjoyed a field day against Trent Alexander-Arnold – but they don’t tell you the full story, with Pep Guardiola missing a trick.

The best right-back in the world, but can he defend? It’s the stick that is constantly used to beat Alexander-Arnold with, and Guardiola put it to the test.

Doku, City’s summer signing, lined up opposite the No. 66 and enjoyed the fourth-most touches of any player (89), created the most chances of the match (four) and ended his 90 minutes with the best xA (0.74).

Moreover, as per FotMob, he won 18 of his 25 ground duels (again, the most of any player) and recorded 12 successful dribbles from 15 attempts, three times the attempts of the next best – insane numbers.

His dribble tally was the most in a single Premier League game since September 2021 and the most against the Reds in the league since 2006/07, according to Opta – but there was no end product at the Etihad.

Liverpool anticipated Doku on the right and ensured Alexander-Arnold was readily backed up by the likes of Joel Matip and Dominik Szoboszlai, and you sense Guardiola missed a trick.

Kostas Tsimikas has not enjoyed the best start to life as Liverpool’s go-to left-back in the absence of Andy Robertson, and this match had the potential for that to be exploited.

In the end, the Greece international contested and won only one ground duel as City focused their attack on the opposite flank, and it was Alexander-Arnold who walked away with the all-important goal.

The 25-year-old won back possession 10 times for the Reds (the most of any player), had the joint-most interceptions (two) and the second-most crosses (four), and his 69 touches were the second-most of any Red.

His inverted role caused debate post-match as to his best position, and Klopp was quick to praise the “influential” display from Alexander-Arnold, which included his battle against Doku.

“He played a really good game, super influential,” Klopp said post-match. “He changed it if you want with the position.

“He had still his moments with Doku where he was really strong in the one-on-one situations. You could see in a lot of moments how difficult it is against him.

“Trent was pretty influential today, in a good way.”

One player saw plenty of the ball, but the other corralled his direct opponent into non-threatening positions and had the end product to match. Guardiola missed a trick, Alexander-Arnold did not.

Jeremy Doku, Man City, Man City vs Liverpool, Pep Guardiola, Stats
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LIVERPOOL FC NEWS
Darwin Nunez costs Liverpool millions following Manchester City display

19 MINS AGO
WILL CASTLE
Liverpool are due to pay Benfica another £8.5m after Darwin Nunez made his 60th appearance for this club in their 1-1 draw with Manchester City.

Nunez was unable to replicate his fine form from the international break against the Citizens, although did grab the headlines after getting into a heated exchange with Pep Guardiola on the full-time whistle.

However, the Mirror are reporting that his contribution in Saturday’s early kick-off triggered an appearance clause in the deal that brought the Uruguayan to Anfield in the summer of 2022.

A club record signing at £85m, only £64m of that figure was paid upfront for Nunez, with the remaining £21m made up of add-ons.

Liverpool paid Benfica £4.3m after the striker made 10 appearances and they’re now set to cough up another £8.5m following the landmark.

The final £8.5m will “depend on the individual and collective performance of the team throughout the contract.”

It’s been a strong start for Nunez this season, having registered 12 goals and seven assists in 16 starts for club and country so far.

That said, he is far from the finished article, still producing the occasional awe-inspiring miss from time to time.

And as such, some are yet to be convinced that Nunez will become a world-beater on Merseyside – with legendary Reds striker Robbie Fowler among those questioning the South American.

“How long do you give him?” Fowler wrote in his column for the Mirror.

“He arrived at Anfield almost 18 months ago now, and yet we are still talking about this potential, this ‘exciting rawness’. But you can’t go through your entire career being raw, can you?

“I do hope that Klopp will convert the rawness of Nunez into something special that allows Liverpool to win the title, as Gary Neville suggested, but I’m not yet convinced it will happen.”

However, on the side of the spectrum, fellow former Liverpool talisman Luis Suarez has hailed his Uruguayan teammate, highlighting the joy of playing alongside Nunez.

“I am in a role that leaves me very happy, trying to help with whatever I have to,” Suarez said. “I have one of the best No.9s in the world in front of me today, which is Darwin.

“The group needs him as he is performing and the only thing I have to do is contribute in what I have to and applaud him for what he is doing.”

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Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp names Liverpool player who had a ‘really good game’ in Man City draw
Liverpool earned a 1-1 draw against Man City at the Etihad.

By Will Rooney
Published 26th Nov 2023, 08:04 GMT
Updated 26th Nov 2023, 08:09 GMT
Jurgen Klopp hailed the ‘super-influential’ impact of Trent Alexander-Arnold in Liverpool’s draw against Manchester City.

The Reds’ vice-captain’s 80th-minute strike at the Etihad Stadium rescued the visitors a 1-1 draw. Liverpool were not at their best against the Premier League champions in the top-of-the-table encounter, with Erling Haaland firing home to give City the lead after 26 minutes.

And with the Reds appearing to be heading for a second league loss of the 2023-24 campaign, Alexander-Arnold had other ideas. With 10 minutes remaining, he was teed-up by Mo Salah and fired a right-footed effort into the far corner.

Alexander-Arnold’s defensive capabilities were given a stern examination by City’s wing wizard Jeremy Doku. But Klopp felt that the England international stood up to the test.

The Liverpool boss said: “Very good. He played a really good game, super-influential. We changed it, if you want, with the position; we brought him and made it more clear where he has to be in these moments.

“But he did that really well and had still his moments with Doku where he was really strong in the one-on-one situations. You could see in a lot of moments how difficult it is against him, he is a really good dribbler. Trent was pretty influential today, in a good way.”

Related topics:Jurgen KloppMan CityTrent Alexander-Arnold
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