How Naby Keita showed what all the fuss was about in Liverpool's West Ham blitz

Chris Bailey 19:59 12/08/2018
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  • Naby Keita’s Premier League debut may have been 12 months in the making, but against West Ham he performed as if he’d been under the auspices of Jurgen Klopp for his entire career.

    Keita and Co romped to a 4-0 win against West Ham on the opening weekend, with Mohamed Salah – who else – opening the scoring before butter-smooth Sadio Mane grabbed a brace and substitute Daniel Sturridge added late polish.

    But below we focus on Keita’s performance, who pulled on a red shirt in a competitive outing for the first time since his signing from RB Leipzig was announced back in August 2017.

    KEY STATS

    Tackles –1

    Interceptions –1

    Passes – 68

    Passing accuracy –88.2%

    Key passes –1

    Dribbles –2

    30-SECOND REPORT

    The Guinean, in a midfield three alongside Gini Wijnaldum and James Milner, was noticeably by far the furthest forward – to such extent that he could be described as the Reds’ fourth attacker.

    West Ham’s middle men allowed him far too much space to run at the defence and play in Andrew Robertson, who promptly supplied Salah for the opener.

    Once Roberto Firmino came off for Jordan Henderson in the 70th minute, Liverpool switched to a 4-4-2 diamond and Keita drifted out to the left, where he looked comfortable against the hapless Hammers.   

    GOT RIGHT

    Keita has often been described as a box-to-box midfielder and while it is one adequate description of his talents, it is only a part of the puzzle.

    Indeed ‘box-to-box’ suggests energy, crunching tackles and bombing forward without hinting at the subtler parts of his game. The 23-year-old is so much more – as evidenced by his passing.

    He played in some deliciously weighted balls to Liverpool’s trident and while his pass for Robertson for the opener was hardly an eye of the needle scenario, the tempo in attack never missed a beat when he was on the ball.

    While his dribbling and tackling ability were both on show, his subtle link-up play – already meshing well with Salah and friends – should be particularly pleasing to Reds fans.

    GOT WRONG

    It’s hard to put a blot against Keita’s name, but once or twice the fast and furious press that Klopp likes to deploy saw him concede position in midfield.

    It’ll probably just be an adjustment period – but the objective in the press is to either force the opposition back or get them to play a risky pass. Keita overran a couple of times, giving the man in possession the easy task of evading him.

    VERDICT

    It’s important not to go overboard on this performance. West Ham’s midfield, as it stands, is one of the weakest in the league with Mark Noble and youngster Declan Rice completely swamped on the day.

    Indeed Keita won’t be given so much time and space frequently in the Premier League – but there’s nothing to suggest that he won’t create it for himself.

    He arrived at a well-drilled team that required just a few artful finishing touches, and Keita’s qualities mean he could prove the masterstroke.

    RATING – 8/10

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