Last season, when Gini Wijnaldum failed to make a name for himself in Paris, I wrote that more often than not, the grass is no greener for Liverpool players pushing to move elsewhere.
It rarely is. Just look at Emre Can, Coutinho, Gini and possibly even Sadio Mane, who found himself on the Bayern Munich bench in their stuttering start to the Bundesliga campaign…
But perhaps it is also the case that Liverpool miss these players more than we previously assumed following their departure.
Now, I’m not necessarily arguing that it wasn’t the right time to get rid of Wijnaldum. He was poor in his last season with us (2020/21) and his performances did not merit the kind of elite salary he was looking for.
But what could also be the case is that Liverpool fans failed to realize Wijnaldum’s brilliance and importance during his pomp.
A fit Fabinho, a healthy Jordan Henderson and the most used player of the three, Wijnaldum, really made up the perfect midfield for the style of football Jurgen Klopp played, and is currently not playing.
Watch this highlight clip from the trio’s performance in our famous win over Manchester City during our title-winning season. Off the ball, the pressure and hounding are exceptional, as is the cunning of interceptions and positioning. Ball retention is first class and they hunt in packs, never too many yards apart.
Henderson, Wijnaldum and Fabinho ????
Is there a better midfield in world football right now? ???? pic.twitter.com/55ylXrwSst
— GOAL (@goal) November 13, 2019
Right now, Liverpool are using a version of Fabinho that looks mentally and physically drained, without much on either side. James Milner’s legs are gone, while Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho are light and talented, nothing like the Wijnaldum-type midfielder of Liverpool pomp.
Thiago is obviously unbelievably good, but therein lies the problem. The Spaniard has never started more than 26 league games in a season throughout his entire career. During his six years in England, Wijnaldum made 38, 36, 33, 35, 37 and 38 Premier League appearances per term. The most undervalued attribute of any footballer is his availability.
A Wijnaldum was worth more in terms of available minutes than Thiago and Naby Keita combined, which makes a mockery of claims that our midfield is truly plentiful in terms of options. If those players aren’t good enough or are injured, there aren’t many.
As a player, we probably don’t appreciate Gini enough either. He could tackle, run, dribble and control possession. He didn’t go into the box much or provide cutting passes, which were used to criticize him, but he wasn’t instructed to do so. No one could take the ball away from him and his energy was almost unmatched. This season we have seen huge gaps in our midfield. Wijnaldum was so positionally effective that this just didn’t happen when he played Klopp.
We need a Wijnaldum-type midfielder in this Liverpool team pic.twitter.com/4w3cFlhneL
— Tom (@Tom1000j) September 8, 2022
Klopp’s comments on Wijnaldum’s sale suggest he would have liked the club to have shelled out the money to keep him on a big deal. The Dutchman hasn’t performed well since he left us and endured his worst season in his last campaign at Liverpool, so while it might have been the right time to part ways, we certainly haven’t replaced him.
Thiago has similarities and is much more dangerous creatively, but his constant injury problems make him half the player he could be for us in terms of effectiveness. Thiago is a better footballer than Wijnaldum, but Wijnaldum was a better footballer that we could trust.
In his prime, he could also dominate a game in multiple areas of the field. Check out this clip of him against the Spurs, a great rival. Now, think of a Liverpool midfielder who could replicate something similar… There isn’t one.
???? UNREAL ????
A master class from @GWijnaldum vs @SpursOfficial ???????? pic.twitter.com/r4r2JyfujW
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 13, 2020
We did very well last season without Gini, especially in the middle of the campaign, which some might think makes this article obsolete. But the point that stands out here is that such an exceptional player was never treated as such during his tenure. We longed for someone to score more, to shoot one from 30 yards…
The truth is that Wijnaldum was already the player we expected Naby Keita to be. We just couldn’t see it at the time.
Liverpool’s task in the coming windows will be to buy players who can bring some of their quiet brilliance. Moises Caicedo or Ibrahima Sangare could be a good place to start.
