Mark Lawrenson: Adam Lallana's the 'best English player'
Liverpool fans were initially dubious whether Adam Lallana would make the grade at Anfield after an otherwise unremarkable debut campaign in the 2014/15 season.
Lallana struggled to make an impact in Brendan Rodgers’ side but the arrival of Jurgen Klopp in October 2015 offered the former Southampton man another crack at the whip and he has been transformed under the German coach.
He has established himself as the midfield heartbeat in Klopp’s pressing game and, while work on his end product is still needed, his willingness to chase lost causes has endeared him to the Kop.
However, the past two summers have been spent bringing in players able to fill the void if any of their star players do succumb to injury.
Liverpool miss Adam Lallana's tireless work off the ball
Liverpool miss Adam Lallana's tireless work off the ball
Sadio Mane has been a revelation since joining from the Saints in 2016 and Mohamed Salah could prove to be the bargain of the summer.
Philippe Coutinho has recently returned to the starting line-up with three goals in as many games and while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is yet to make an impact since his move from Arsenal, he is still young enough to develop into an exciting talent under Klopp.
So why then, with an array of flair players at Klopp’s disposal, have Liverpool seemingly stepped away from the style of play that excited Reds and neutral fans alike?
Granted, it is Liverpool’s defence that has come under heavy criticism so far this season with West Ham and Crystal Palace the only clubs to have conceded more in the league.
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Adam Lallana's absence has had a huge impact at Liverpool
But Klopp’s gegenpressing style of play ensures the defending begins from the front and there seems to be a lack of cohesive effort from the forward players to press high up the field in recent weeks.
That’s where Lallana has been so effective over the past two years working with the former Borussia Dortmund boss.
The 29-year-old is gifted with one of the best first touches in the league and can mesmerise at times with the ball at his feet.
Yet it is his tireless work off the ball that Liverpool fans have come to love, and something that has been present at international level for England as well.
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Adam Lallana has epitomised the gegenpressing style under Jurgen Klopp
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He covered 13.72km in the 2-2 draw with West Ham last December
No English team averaged more distance covered per game than Liverpool and in December last year he had registered three of the top 10 best distance marks in the league.
It was the 2-2 draw against West Ham in which Lallana ran a staggering 13.72km and to put that into perspective Gylfi Sigurdsson, who averaged the highest distance covered in the league last year, only averaged around 11km per game.
There is no denying the likes of Roberto Firmino, Jordan Henderson and others put in a similar shift to press the ball, but not to the extent of Lallana and the stats don’t lie.
He only returned to training last week and Klopp will be hoping to speed up his recovery over the international break in order to reverse Liverpool’s recent fortunes.
The Reds look like a well-oiled machine when Lallana is at full steam in midfield and Liverpool’s generator has been close to empty without Klopp’s poster boy in the side.
