Angelo Stiller is the ONE to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold | OneFootball

From Alexander-Arnold to Angelo Stiller

Stuttgarter Nachrichten in Germany claims Liverpool have intensified their interest in Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller. The midfielder has been linked with the Reds for some time now and it appears they’re ready to push on.

And it’s easy to see why, especially in light of the Alexander-Arnold news.

The right-back’s big, irreplaceable trait is that he provides a remarkable number of progressive passes. Those are completed passes that move the team forward at least 10 yards.

Alexander-Arnold provides, quite comfortably, more than any other full-back. He also provides more than just about any other player.

Liverpool, then, need to replace that and they’re not finding another right-back who can do it. If they don’t, the entire team becomes a lot less incisive with the ball.

The easiest way to bring that into the side is with a deep midfielder. Stiller is exactly that and he brings an incredible number of progressive passes - 98th percentile across midfielders in Europe (and that makes it one of the highest numbers in Europe, given midfielders play more of these passes than anyone).

So here’s how they do it ‘in the aggregate’. Liverpool can add a midfielder who moves the team forward, forget about doing it from full-back and instead embrace what Bradley offers from full-back.