Tactical Watch: Room for experimentation

St Mary’s plays host to the final day of the season. What can we expect?

This weekend’s game may well carry a slightly odd feel to it, as both teams involved place their gaze firmly on preparing for next season. With relegation confirmed for Southampton and the top four out of reach for Liverpool, there’s certainly room for experimentation here.

That paves the way for a whole host of changes to the squads for either side, with managers likely to hand minutes to those confirmed to be leaving their clubs – the most notable of which is Roberto Firmino – or those emerging from the youth ranks, such as Kamari Doyle and Dom Ballard, who made their Premier League debuts at Brighton last weekend.

The full-time whistle will present both sides a chance to fully reflect on frustrations, as neither side had the campaign hoped or planned for.

Speaking of experimentation, what changes have we seen from Liverpool in 2023?

Back in early March, Liverpool hit a rich vein of form as their performances suddenly improved tenfold, leading to a seven-game win streak that put them in with a shot of finishing in the top four.

It was no freak upturn or eventual righting of fortunes on the pitch; it was the result of a tactical change from Jürgen Klopp that made Trent Alexander-Arnold the centrepiece of their possession play.

When Liverpool are on the ball, Alexander-Arnold inverts into the holding midfield area and dictates play from the central zones. From there he doesn’t just conduct short interplay, he uses his brilliant passing range to unlock the other parts of the Reds’ team too. The switch to the left winger in space is particularly potent.

In this role, Alexander-Arnold's influence on games has grown massively – his average number of touches, passes and chances created per game are all up – and he’s been Liverpool’s star player for two months.

How can you get the better of this tactical tweak, and therefore Liverpool?

Seven straight opponents failed to get the better of it, but Aston Villa broke the run last weekend and did so by man-marking both Alexander-Arnold and Fabinho where possible when out of possession, then targeting the space Alexander-Arnold vacates quickly when they did win the ball.

It’s not as simple as it sounds. First it has to happen fast, with great accuracy, and your forward must be able to run the channels; second, you have to catch Liverpool out of alignment, as when Alexander-Arnold moves inward, Ibrahima Konaté moves to the right to provide balance. He is well equipped to cover large spaces but can be beaten by sheer pace, or he can get stuck out there, leaving Alexander-Arnold almost at centre-back and looking uncomfortable.

This tactic, while effective, is still new for Klopp’s men, so there are windows to catch them on the hop. Those windows don’t stay open for very long, though, and you still have to find a way past the world-class Alisson Becker at the end of it all.

Predicted XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konaté, van Dijk, Robertson; Fabinho, Henderson, Jones; Salah, Gakpo, Díaz.

Notes:
- Salah is one goal away from the fabled 20 mark, so expect him to try his best to hit that threshold on the final day
- Darwin Núñez returned to training this week, so Klopp may find a way to fit him into the stating XI
- If that happens, Gakpo may drop into midfield – potentially at the expense of Jones – for an experimental look
- Firmino will no doubt be given a late cameo to wave farewell to an away section that has adored him since 2015