Before his injury in the 2018-19 season, Joe Gomez looked an extremely capable player in the heart of the Reds’ defence and was on course to forming a formidable partnership alongside Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool‘s centre half pairing looked unbreachable and in some moments, Gomez looked even better than the colossal van Dijk. However, he suffered a long term against Burnley which ruled him out for most of the season. He did make a comeback in the last few matches of the season, but Joel Matip’s magnificent form did not give him a look in. Further, it is well documented that getting back to full fitness from such a long term injury requires time and patience, particularly for a young player.
In the ongoing season, although Jurgen Klopp has preferred Dejan Lovren to replace Matip in the Premier League since the Cameroonian’s injury, Gomez has played regularly in the League Cup and the Champions League and made the starting XI in the Community Shield and the UEFA Super Cup Final.
Although the former Charlton man is making his way back to 100% match sharpness, here are three reasons why Gomez is the future of Liverpool’s defence.
#1. Learning from the best
It is a well-established fact that young players in the team need senior players to look up to and learn from, which goes a long way in preparing them to take over the mantle when the time comes. In the case of Gomez, he has the opportunity to play alongside and learn from arguably the best defender in the world and the current UEFA Men’s Player of the Year. He also has the opportunity to learn from the experience of the likes of Matip and Lovren.
Playing alongside a defender of van Dijk’s stature is a spectacular learning experience and something that many defenders in the world would be yearning for. Gomez would surely benefit from the advice and tips from the aforementioned players and just watching the likes of van Dijk play would be a huge part of the learning curve for him.
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#2. Pace
In the yesteryears of football, full-backs were considered as only defenders who did not venture out of their own half much. However, things changed and full-backs were considered an attacking outlet, epitomised by the rise of the likes of Dani Alves, Marcelo, etc.
Today, in many teams, a great deal of attacking output flows via the full-backs with the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson, Kyle Walker and Jordi Alba, regularly bombing up the pitch and spending a lion’s share of the game time in the opposition half.
Similarly and in some part, due to the change in the roles of full-backs, the role of centre-backs has also changed over the years. In the modern game, centre-halves are not just required to be big and strong to force attackers off the ball, but are needed to be quick off the mark and have good recovery pace.
This is so because many teams prefer to hold a high defensive line and with the full-backs going forwards, the centre-backs are required to defend the wide areas of the pitch as well.
In the Liverpool team, van Dijk is lightning quick and also clocked the highest sprint speed of the 2018-19 UEFA Champions League against Barcelona. Undoubtedly, Gomez possesses blistering pace and has shown it in many occasions, especially in the Champions League match against Red Star Belgrade last season.
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With Gomez possessing such pace, he becomes a frightening prospect for opposition attackers.
#3. Age
Joe Gomez has played 76 games for Liverpool, 24 games for Charlton Athletic and has 7 caps for England. Thus it is easy to forget that he is just 22 years old. A centre-backs best years are arguably between the age of 26-32, meaning Gomez still has 4 years to iron out the flaws in his game and become an impeccable defender well before his prime.
With Gomez already possessing this level of ability, it is definitely an exciting prospect as to how good he could be in the next 4 years.
Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk are 28 years old and Dejan Lovren is in the wrong side of 30, giving Gomez a fantastic opportunity to establsh himself in the heart of Liverpool’s defence. The former Charlton man is a good young player with a bright future ahead of him. With his immense ability, unlimited potential and exceptional coaching staff at Liverpool, Gomez has the world at his feet.
