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What future do these three Liverpool veterans have under Jurgen Klopp?
Lucas Leiva
During his extended spell at Anfield, Lucas Leiva has forever seemed to be either on the verge of the exit door, or absolutely central to the current first-team plans. Last summer was no different but after being shown a degree of faith by Brendan Rodgers, Lucas has gone on to impress in patches this season, certainly justifying the decision to keep him a little under 12 months ago.
The experienced Brazilian has proven his worth to Liverpool throughout the campaign, adding a surprising string to his bow this year. Long considered as a fairly limited defensive midfielder, who although was excellent at breaking up play, did not have much else in his locker, Lucas’s utilisation at centre-half has been exceptionally useful at times. First stepping into the role in the early rounds of the FA Cup, Klopp re-visited this as an option in some more high-profile matches, culminating in the final of the Capital One Cup, where Lucas was Liverpool’s man of the match in many people’s opinion. It was seen last season that Emre Can is also able to do a job at centre-half, but the German’s dynamism and composure on the ball makes him the preferred option at holding midfield, so Lucas may well find that filling in further back could be one of his main access routes to first-team minutes.
Having often struggled in the past for both numbers and quality in the heart of midfield, Liverpool now find themselves blessed in this area. Jordan Henderson, Emre Can and James Milner all boast tremendous running power and leadership qualities as senior pros at the club now, while a multitude of academy products have impressed over the last few months. Kevin Stewart has frequently been deployed in this role in the closing weeks of the Premier League season as The Reds’ priorities turned to the Europa League, and the likes of Cameron Brannagan and Pedro Chirivella are also highly thought of within the Shankly Gates. will help Lucas’ case slightly, but additional threats to the Brazilian will come from outside Anfield too.
Like Joel Matip, Marko Grujic was also picked up by Jurgen Klopp during January, and the young Serbian is almost certainly a talented youngster with a terrific future on Merseyside. has also been linked strongly with Liverpool over the last few months and with rumours intensifying of an imminent deal, his arrival at Anfield looks increasingly likely with each passing day. Should this also come to pass, The Reds’ midfield ranks appear highly congested and with Jurgen Klopp’s penchant for a high tempo game, Lucas could find himself surplus to requirements.
In a terrific display of respect and admiration for the commitment shown by Liverpool’s number 21 over the years, . This seemed to humble the Anfield veteran and if nothing else, will have reassured him that he is still valued in the red half of Merseyside. Now, he must channel the determination that has seen him return from adversity before in order to show that he can still contribute to the side in some capacity. First team opportunities will inevitably be limited, but if he is happy to put up with this, then Lucas still has a role to play at Anfield.