Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves has described Liverpool's Thiago Alcantara as his toughest Premier League midfielder thanks to the Spain international's blend of intelligence and physicality.
Thiago suffered an injury-hit first season at Liverpool after joining from Bayern Munich in September 2020. This season has been more fruitful for the 30-year-old, though, playing a big part in the Reds' quest for a sensational quadruple.
Neves has impressed himself, prompting links with Manchester United among other clubs, and is on track to match his career-best return of six league goals in a single season. The 24-year-old has spoken of former Reds midfielder Xabi Alonso as a player whose game he has looked to for inspiration, but insists Thiago is the toughest rival he has faced in the Premier League.
"[Alonso and Sergio Busquets] are references for me," Neves, who played against the pair for Porto and Portugal respectively, told The Athletic. "It’s an honour to play against them and to have their shirt at home.”
When quizzed on his toughest opponent, he mentioned the pair once more. “Alonso and Busquets, who I mentioned earlier, but I will also say one from the Premier League — Thiago," he said. When I played against Xabi Alonso (at Bayern), Thiago was there as well… that was a hard game!
Neves and Thiago went head to head in December, both playing 90 minutes as Divock Origi's late goal gave Liverpool victory at Molineux. The pair also faced off in March, with that game also ending in a 1-0 Reds win thanks to a Diogo Jota goal.
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"Thiago is one of the hardest," Neves said. "So smart. Quality, physicality, he’s one of the best. I can say N’Golo Kante as well, it’s impossible to take the ball from him and, defensively, he’s a monster. But my first choice would be Thiago.”
Thiago only managed 30 appearances in his first Liverpool season, thanks in part to an injury sustained in his first Merseyside derby. However, despite being forced to sit out the Carabao Cup final, he is just seven games shy of that tally.
Neves' praise for Thiago comes after Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp suggested fans had yet to see the best of the Reds' number six. “Thiago, in a really difficult season, has become a very important player for us,” the German said in May 2021 as Liverpool pushed for what would be an eventual third-place finish.
“He started really well, then got a bad injury and an annoying one as well because it took really long [to heal] then he came back into the team that is not really clicking. As a football player, he works a lot and is a good, hard-working guy, but he comes rather from the technical side and was used to different patterns Bayern Munich and all these kinds of things, so it is not just a year where a new signing shines, especially in midfield.
"We will see the best of him. I don't think we saw it already, but that is not a problem. We are 100 per cent convinced we will get the best out of him because he is a world-class player.”
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