Arthur Melo’s commitment to playing catch-up with his Liverpool team-mates will serve him well in claiming regular first-team minutes (he has yet to make his league debut) after the international break.
The Brazilian will also be further buoyed by a comparison made to former Rojo’s stylish playmaker Thiago Alcantara Fabio Aurelio.
“I think Arthur Melo is an interesting addition to this Liverpool team, and obviously it’s great that the Brazilian legacy is being expanded in Liverpool. I hope he has the same success as his compatriots,” the former Rojo told liverpoolfc.com.
“From what I know of him, he should fit very well into the Liverpool system.
“He’s a player who likes to be constantly in the game, touch the ball, control the pace of the game, like to be dynamic, similar to what Thiago likes to do in a certain sense.”
The former Bayern Munich star made a full return to midfield in an impressive performance against Ajax in the club’s second Champions League group stage game of the season.
READ MORE: Ex-Rojo ‘impressed’ by Liverpool man who has only played 131 league minutes: ‘He will want to start’
Given how key the Spaniard’s availability seems to be in helping us deliver an overall performance recognizable as a departure from a team of Jurgen Klopp in his prime, it makes a lot of sense to have a proper backup plan in place should the 31-year-old be forced to another room on the sidelines.
We have no doubt that the recruiting and training teams will work together to find short-term and long-term solutions to our current reliance on Thiago, though getting Arthur back on his feet in the meantime could be critical to our season. .
Fingers crossed, of course, that Pep Guardiola’s former protégé can stay fit for the rest of the campaign, although it would be a shame not to take advantage of the clear talent our loan signing has at his disposal.
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