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Curtis Jones impressed at right-back against Brighton and there is a space there in the starting XI if he wants it.
What do James Milner, James Garner and Curtis Jones all have in common?
All three are a manager’s dream in that if you ask them to play anywhere on the park, they will do it with the same energy and commitment that they would their preferred midfield berth. Modern football has changed, the full-back has become pivotal to any team’s tactics whether they are tasked with providing width or having to invert to overload the midfield.
Can Curtis Jones become Liverpool’s new right-back?
Either way, they have to be among the fittest players in the team, which is why midfielders like Milner, Garner and Jones can slot so seamlessly into a position where any shape or size can be trusted to do a job. Some managers prefer to have converted wingers, others want centre-halves who are comfortable on the ball, however, as he showed so competently against Brighton, Jones could well be the next midfielder to convert.
Jones just wants to play. He has never let Liverpool down and he has the technical ability to start more often than not, he also has the physicality and availability to play 55-60 games a season. With nobody holding down the position, why not give Jones a run of games on the right of defence? At over 6ft tall, athletic and one of the best passers in the team, he is almost the perfect prototypical modern full-back.
What Slot has said about Jones’ performance
If he is willing to make the switch on a longer basis, Slot certainly wouldn’t have any issues playing the 25-year old after admitting that he doesn’t want to let him leave: “[He played] very well. Curtis is a very good player, I’ve said this many times also to him and he agrees with me by the way,” Slot said via Liverpool’s official website after the 3-0 win over Brighton where Jones was outstanding and scored.
“Unfortunately for him, he’s playing in a line (midfield) where I have many good players and also [they are] available. So if he would be playing in another position, he would have played much, much more, but that’s the only line – touch wood – where we haven’t had our problems this season, and then you sometimes need him or other players in different positions and so many times they’ve done well.
“Dominik has played so many different positions, Ryan (Gravenberch) played centre-back and now tonight Curtis had to play as a full-back and he did really well.
“It was very pleasing to see that the first goal was an assist from the left full-back to the right full-back – that probably tells you a lot about the intentions these players have when they step on the pitch.”
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