Liverpool's midfield of Fabinho and Thiago dominated Arsenal, can Real Madrid handle Klopp's revitalized unit?
CBSN
Restoring Liverpool's midfield to its former glory has Jurgen Klopp's ready for their Champions League quarterfinal
LONDON -- Nothing about Liverpool's 3-0 win at the Emirates Stadium suggested that their central defensive pairing is anything other than the relative weak point of their side but Real Madrid would do well to learn from Arsenal's travails. It will take an impressive effort to get through to the Reds' underbelly. No matter their form, the simple truth is that Ozan Kabak and Nathaniel Phillips at the peak of their powers are not of the same standard as the world class players who surrounded them. Arsenal understood that and one of the few things they got right in a woeful display was their early commitment to harassing the Liverpool centre-backs, Martin Odegaard in particular ratcheting up the intensity of his press whenever the ball went to those two. The issue Arsenal ran into and Real Madrid may yet is that when Kabak and Phillips are surrounded by a midfield finally deploying players in their best positions, a front three that playing with welcome zip and a revived full-back pairing, Liverpool can cope with the fact that they do not have Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez at the back. All the center backs have to do when they come under pressure is play the easy pass to the man outside them or Fabinho and Jurgen Klopp's side can build again from there.More Related News
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