There was plenty to like about Jérémy Jacquet’s Liverpool debut against Como.
The French defender was outstanding in the first half of the 2-0 victory, looking composed alongside Virgil van Dijk and even capping his performance with a goal shortly before half-time.
It was exactly the sort of debut Liverpool supporters wanted to see.
But while we should rightfully applaud Jacquet, I think we need to be careful about getting carried away.
We’ve seen this before
I remember watching Dejan Lovren make his Liverpool debut against Borussia Dortmund at Anfield in 2014.
Liverpool won 4-0 and Lovren scored the second goal. He looked incredibly impressive that night and, for a moment, it was easy to think Liverpool had found themselves an outstanding centre-back.
The reality turned out to be rather different.
Lovren struggled during his early Liverpool career and was eventually dropped after a difficult run of performances. It took time before he became the much more reliable defender we eventually saw under Jürgen Klopp.
That’s the danger with judging a player from one game.
One excellent performance doesn’t guarantee a brilliant Liverpool career.
And one poor performance wouldn’t necessarily mean a player is a flop either.
But Jacquet has given us plenty of reasons to be excited
That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be incredibly encouraged by what we saw.
Because Jacquet didn’t simply score a goal.
He looked like he belonged.
He was calm on the ball, aggressive when defending and looked comfortable playing alongside Van Dijk.
His recovery pace was also noticeable, and he appeared confident dealing with Como’s attackers one-on-one. His performance attracted plenty of praise from supporters, and he even had the Kop singing his name before finding the net.
That’s a fantastic first impression.
And when you consider that he’s still only 21, there could be plenty more to come.
The most encouraging thing was his composure
For me, this was what stood out most.
Jacquet didn’t look like a young player desperately trying to impress.
He looked comfortable.
He wasn’t constantly rushing into challenges or trying to do something spectacular.
He seemed to understand when to step forward, when to hold his position and when to play the simple pass.
That’s exactly what you want from a centre-back.
And having Virgil van Dijk alongside him certainly won’t hurt.
Van Dijk can provide the experience while Jacquet continues to learn the demands of playing at Liverpool.
And then there’s Araújo…
The second half gave us another reason to be excited.
Ronald Araújo came on for Jacquet and also impressed on his Liverpool debut.
That gives Iraola some serious options at centre-back.
Van Dijk.
Araújo.
Jacquet.
And suddenly Liverpool’s defence looks considerably stronger.
But again, let’s not get carried away after one afternoon.
We’ve seen plenty of players have brilliant Liverpool debuts before.
The real test comes when the Premier League starts, the Champions League arrives, the pressure increases and Liverpool face some of the best attacking players in Europe.
That’s when we will discover what Jacquet is really made of.
Let’s give him time
I think Liverpool supporters should enjoy what we saw.
We should be excited.
We should applaud Jacquet for an outstanding debut.
We should enjoy the goal.
We should talk about his defensive performance.
But we shouldn’t be expecting him to become Virgil van Dijk overnight.
That’s unfair to the player.
Jacquet has barely started his Liverpool journey.
The Como game was one match.
It was an extremely encouraging one, but it was still only one match.
First impressions? Absolutely brilliant.
Future Liverpool star? Let’s wait and see.
That’s the sensible approach.
Because we’ve been here before.
I remember watching Lovren against Dortmund and thinking Liverpool had something special.
Years later, we learned that first impressions can be misleading.
Hopefully Jacquet’s story turns out very differently.
And if his first 45 minutes are anything to go by, Liverpool supporters have every reason to be excited about what might come next.
Jamie (The Kopite View)