The days of Jurgen Klopp automatically selecting the same three men for Liverpool’s attacking trident are now long gone. The trio of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah have started just four matches together in 2021/22, and it’s not impossible they may never do so again.
The longest standing of the forwards has struggled with injuries this season, but there have been plenty of calls recently for Bobby to return for some of the massive matches in the run-in. No matter the remarkable talents the Reds’ other forwards possess, nobody ties the attack together quite like Firmino.
The Brazilian is realistically competing with Diogo Jota and Mane when it comes to starting in the centre of the front three. The recent record of the former Wolves man – with a goal in each of his last four starts – suggests he should get the nod though, and not purely thanks to his volume of goals.
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Since moving to Liverpool ahead of the 2021/22 season, Jota has proven he can perform in the very toughest of matches. Across the last two campaigns, only Salah has scored more goals in a mini-league of the Premier League’s big six clubs, and the Reds’ number 20 is joint-top of the chart if we ignore penalties.
His latest such goal came at the Etihad Stadium in a 2-2 draw with Manchester City on Sunday. With Liverpool having started the match poorly and gone behind to a deflected effort from Kevin De Bruyne, it was vital they quickly got a foothold in the game, and they did so thanks to Jota.
A look at the numbers illustrates why he was the man most likely to get the Reds back on track. The Portuguese forward has scored their first goal – be that to go 1-0 up or to equalise when 1-0 down – on 14 occasions this season. Mane and Salah have done so seven times each and nobody else in Jurgen Klopp’s squad has more than three such strikes, illustrating how vital many of Jota’s goals have been this term.
The build up to his goal against City was reminiscent of one Firmino scored in the same fixture back in 2019, in the sense that it was a pass between Liverpool’s full-backs which directly preceded the assist. On this occasion, Andy Robertson found Trent Alexander-Arnold in the penalty box and he laid the ball back to tee up Jota who levelled the match.
Similar to how Diogo has repeatedly scored the Reds’ opener in games this season, so Liverpool’s first choice right-back has set them up. Alexander-Arnold has eight ‘first goal’ assists in 2021/22, one more than Salah and Robertson.
But it’s his link-up with Jota which has arguably mattered most of all. The duo combined for their sixth goal of the campaign last time out, which makes them Liverpool’s top assist-scorer partnership for any of the last four seasons. The only instance of a more productive pairing in the Klopp era occurred in 2017/18, when Firmino assisted eight goals for Salah.
Alexander-Arnold and Jota may yet reach that mark as the Reds still have at least nine more matches to play. Even if they fall short, the value of their work together this season should not be underestimated.
The pair provided the opener in the home wins over Atletico Madrid and Cardiff City, as well as being responsible for both goals in the League Cup semi-final victory at Arsenal. While the second in a game is a shade less important, any goals Liverpool score at Old Trafford are always welcome and they combined to put their side two up in what became a remarkable 5-0 win.
Add in the three goals he set up for Jota last season – with two in the Champions League and another against Arsenal – and Alexander-Arnold has only assisted more Liverpool goals for Mane, despite playing roughly four times as many minutes with the Senegalese striker.
Successful football teams are built upon the key relationships within them. With plenty of massive games still to play this term and a strong partnership formed with Liverpool’s most creative player, it’s clear Jota needs to feature as often as he can.
