James Milner's Resurgence
Headed into the 2016-2017, campaign the biggest question at Liverpool was what to do with the left back position. The Reds had been linked to the likes of young left backs like Ben Chilwell. But those talks had broken down and Liverpool had not found a left back in the transfer window. That left Liverpool with only the bipolar Alberto Moreno at the position headed into the season. Of course this was a concern for reds fans. We after all had seen the Moreno experiment play out and were not happy with his play. If Moreno was going to be the starter, then Liverpool was going to have a large hole that could have doomed them. Yet here is the genius of Jurgen Klopp. He thought outside the box and converted James Milner to left back. Many, myself included, thought that Klopp was making an error especially after watching the Arsenal match. But once again Jurgen proved that he was smarter than us all.
Many Liverpool fans knew that Alberto Moreno was not the answer at left back. Sure Moreno had shown pace in Klopp's system. But that appeared to be the only thing Moreno excelled at. Yes he is fast, but that is also his weakness. Often Moreno would find himself out of position. This left his side exposed and caused Liverpool to essentially have 3 defenders. Sure he could create on the offensive side, but he made so many boneheaded mistakes that Liverpool could not afford to allow him to be the starter anymore. Go back and watch the Manchester United match. Moreno moves forward, but gets exposed leaving his area open for a Manchester United goal. Every single fan knew that Liverpool needed a left back, but we never thought that it would be James Milner.
Of course the Milner experiment did not get off to a good start. James was useless as Arsenal came back from a 4-1 deficit to score 2 straight goals and made the match 4-3. Then Burnley also exposed Milner as Burnley shocked Liverpool. But since that Burnley match Milner has been fantastic. He seems to be the perfect Klopp left back. One that can cover ground and get back into position. Milner has done just that. Consider this: Milner has covered the most ground in the premier league before Klopp arrived. Since Klopp's arrival those figures have only increased. So Milner is used to moving forward and tracking back, something Moreno never seemed comfortable with. Milner has also been able to use his guile and experience. Trapping and pressing on defense and also attacking correctly on offense. Milner has excelled at left back and revitalized his career.
Do you know who the lading scorer for Liverpool is? It's Milner. Yes boring James Milner leads a team with Sturridge, Origi, Firmino, Mane, Coutinho in goals. And why is that? It's because Milner has become Liverpool's best penalty taker. In 3 straight matches, Milner has scored on penalties. He has proven to be Klopp's most trusted player. Perhaps the switch to left back has given Milner a new breath of confidence. This year, Milner has averaged 2.3 tackles and 3 clearances a match. His overall rating has skyrocketed to a 7.45. So it appears that Milner has grown to become more comfortable at left back. Whatever the case, Milner has made the most out of this opportunity.
Of course the big test comes this week against Manchester United. Let us see if Milner can continue to thrive in this role. Manchester United probably will try long balls to catch Milner out of position. So the test will be to see if James can track back. If Milner does have a good match then we can solidify Klopp as a genius. Going into this season he could have used James as a substitute midfielder. But instead Klopp started Milner at left back. Yes there have been some speed bumps. However, it appears that Milner has turned a corner and has been revitalized by the move.
