Curtis Jones has shown traits more closely aligned to that of Andres Iniesta rather than Steven Gerrard during his time under Arne Slot, Liverpool expert David Lynch has claimed.
Slot's remarkable start to life as Reds boss was built upon the chemistry of midfielders Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, with the trio selected from the off in eight of the Dutchman's first nine games in charge.
However, Jones has found himself in the starting lineup in six of Liverpool's last eight matches and has arguably displaced Szoboszlai from the first team.
The midfielder's improvement this campaign both with and without the ball has been impressive, but while his Scouse roots may draw comparisons to Gerrard, Lynch believes that Jones is more stylistically comparable to the likes of Iniesta, telling Sports Mole: "I think he does lean towards that Iniesta type, a bit of a controller, lending the ball and moving it around and then quickening the pace.
"[Jones] can add that bit of end product, but I think he's always going to lean more to that [Iniesta] type because that's what he's always been. I saw him coming through – [he] used to play on the left hand side when he came through the academy.
"We saw Iniesta do that quite a lot when he was younger and before he became that controlling central midfielder. So there's some similarities there. And I'm [not] comparing Curtis Jones to Iniesta, he's got a long way to go to reach those levels."
Jones's improvement under Arne Slot
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Those who watched Jones's rise through the academy might have thought that the player would develop into either a wide attacker or a goalscoring midfielder, but few could have predicted that he would become so rounded from a defensive perspective.
Indeed, Slot tasked the Scouser with marking Chelsea's Cole Palmer when his side clashed with the Reds at Anfield on October 20, and the Blues forward was notably subdued during the match.
With the ball, there are few positional peers in the Premier League better at keeping possession considering Jones boasts a passing accuracy of 92.7%, the joint third-best figure of any midfielder in the division.
Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch discussed Jones's improved use of the ball this campaign, revealing that Slot thought the player could learn to release passes quicker, saying: "His passing accuracy is regularly, no matter whether it's England or Liverpool, near 95% - it's ridiculous. Very few players are capable of doing that when they get pressed and pressured in the Premier League.
"One of the lines I got from a source, which was somebody close to pre-season, said [keeping the ball too long was] one of the main frustrations Arne Slot had with him. He'd come in, saw him in training and thought, 'this is something I need to work on with him'.
"He's really, really good now at judging when to slow it down, when to speed it up, and that's what you need as a midfielder, particularly in [Slot's] setup and this type of football - the ability to switch the tempo up and down. That's how you catch the opposition out, that's how you disorganise the defence."
Can he keep Szoboszlai out of the team?
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It is difficult to say whether Liverpool can afford to keep Szoboszlai out of the first XI for an extended period given the Hungarian's importance out of possession.
The front line of Slot's pressing structure has been breached on a number of occasions this season, and Szoboszlai's recovery runs have been vital for making sure that the two midfielders behind him have not been overrun.
Jones does not possess his counterpart's incredible speed and power, but he is physically capable and is no slouch himself.
The pair are ultimately different types of footballers – if Szoboszlai can be described as a powerhouse, then Jones is a robust technician.
Jones's quality in small pockets of space should not be underestimated, and his cool temperament in possession often helps Liverpool evade opposition pressure in build-up, as well as sustain attacks in the final third.
If the midfielder can consistently contribute goals and assists on top of his excellent work in and out of possession, then as Lynch told Sports Mole: "It'd be very, very difficult for Arne Slot to leave him out, which is great to see [from] a local lad.
"You start to wonder where his weaknesses are, because he's physically great, [his] touch is fantastic. He's got all those other elements that he learned under Jurgen Klopp as well.
"He's got an awful lot going for him, and I think he's going to play a lot of games this season under Arne Slot."
Sports Mole editor Barney Corkhill spoke with Liverpool expert David Lynch to discuss Curtis Jones's fine form for club and country, and whether he can establish himself in the Reds' first team.
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.
Lewis Nolan
