It’s been almost three months since Liverpool’s 2024/25 campaign began, and Arne Slot’s side perch atop the summit of both the Premier League and the Champions League, having qualified for the Carabao Cup quarter-finals too.
What a start. When Jurgen Klopp stood down from his lionised manager’s position at the end of last season, no one envisaged this. But it has happened, and with Arsenal and Manchester City both currently out of sorts, the Reds faithful will be cautiously hopeful that big things might be achieved.
It could have been different, so very different. As soon as Klopp spoke into the camera and shattered a city’s red heart, rumours started bobbing up regarding Xabi Alonso, who appeared to be the perfect successor.
He’d been working wonders with Bayer Leverkusen, but rejected Liverpool’s probes and confirmed that he would remain in Germany for the foreseeable. A prudent move from a 42-year-old coach who knows an elite managerial career lies ahead, one that may, one day, find him in the Anfield dugout – on the righthand side, at least.
Indeed, Alonso made his return to Merseyside this week and saw his team, so indomitable last year, utterly wrecked by Slot’s machine. At the core of the home side’s success was Curtis Jones, who looked to be cut from the same cloth as the legendary Spaniard at times, his passing was so slick and stylish.
Curtis Jones' "Alonso-esque" display
Jones, 23, has ebbed and flowed throughout his Liverpool career, often demonstrating great promise but also being plugged back by injuries and infrequent starting berths that come as a by-product of such setbacks.
But he has started to find his feet under Slot’s management, having waxed lyrical about the Dutch coach’s tactical philosophy during pre-season, explaining to reporters that the more control-oriented brand suits his own passing game perfectly:
“He’s amazing actually. It’s probably the happiest I’ve been in terms of a style of play that suits me and the lads we have in our team. It’s a clear plan. The training and stuff he is fully involved [in]. He coaches us a lot.
“He’s big on the finer details and things. He’s got a certain way of playing. He knows it’s going to take a little bit of time because obviously it’s a big change, but him and his staff are chilled about it and they know that the quality is all there.”
It’s understandable. As per FBref, Jones ranks among the top 6% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, the top 10% for assists, the top 17% for progressive carries and the top 8% for successful take-ons per 90.
Technical and driven, he’s almost tailor-made for Slot’s style of football and it’s no wonder he’s starting to look like a fundamental piece of a thriving system, showcasing his quality against Alonso’s side in midweek.
That through ball was a thing to be witnessed. So simple, yet so perfect, weighted with an artist’s flourish. The Athletic’s James Pearce had even praised the “Alonso-esque” through ball, with the opposition manager’s identity certainly not lost on the correspondent.
Minutes played
73′
Assists
1
Touches
51
Accurate passes
27/30 (90%)
Key passes
3
Possession lost
8x
Dribbles (completed)
2 (2)
Interceptions
1
Total duels (won)
5 (4)
Jones’ particular approach to the midfield craft is something that Slot is utilising well, but he’s not actually Liverpool’s own version of Alonso.
Instead, the club have a more fitting successor in Stefan Bajcetic, who is currently out on loan with RB Salzburg in Austria.
Stefan Bajcetic could be Slot's version of Xabi Alonso
In the 2022/23 season, Bajcetic made 19 appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s side, emerging from the youth fold to save a squad in crisis, scoring once – against Aston Villa in the Premier League – and announcing to the Reds supporters that they had a new prodigy to rally behind.
Bajcetic was signed from Celta Vigo for just £224k in December 2020 and is touted for a star role in Liverpool’s engine room. Now 19, his fast-paced development was halted last term as he battled against injuries and growth-related issues that restricted him to a mere handful of displays.
Hailed for his “special” skill set by journalist Zubin Daver, the Spaniard is making headway under Pep Lijnders in Austria even if Salzburg as a whole are flattering to deceive, with five Bundesliga starts to his name and metrics that highlight his roundedness.
Indeed, as per Sofascore, Bajcetic has averaged 2.2 tackles, 1.5 dribbles and six successful duels per top-flight game this term, winning a whopping 62% of the lattermost metric – placing him in the same ballpark as the thriving Ryan Gravenberch (64% success rate in the Premier League).
He’s making the requisite improvements, shaping into a midfield force. Alonso, elegant and all-seeing in the middle of the park, was indeed an elite long-range passer but he was also a tenacious and confident protector of his backline. However, not the most imposing of athletes, this was down to his intelligence and knowledge of his craft. Is it really surprising he’s turning into one of the finest coaches in the business?
Perhaps not. Bajcetic, too, is not a hulking, heavyset force of a titan, though a spurt across the past year has seen him stretch to a height of 6 foot 2. Even so, his range of defensive qualities comes from a cerebral understanding of football that belies his youthful years and inexperience.
The Spanish midfielder plays with an almost unflappable mindset, reflected in his playing style. He’s not got the same surgical distribution that was innately formed in Alonso’s itinerary, but that’s not to say Bajcetic isn’t capable of splitting defences with well-worked balls.
Bajcetic will continue to hone his craft over in Salzburg, but keep an eye on him, for he might just return to Merseyside with a hunger for stardom under Slot’s wing, and he might just challenge the likes of Jones for a starring spot in a competitive outfit.
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