Great Leaps Upwards Have Fuelled Winning Run

Leapers and Keepers Keeping Liverpool on the Rise

In 2020/21 run-in, as the Reds floundered, I said that height at the back was vital; winning aerials, heft at set-pieces.

I didn't think it would prove quite as pivotal as it did, and I didn't foresee the two players who solved the problem; but in came Rhys Williams and Nat Phillips, and, at best 2nd-tier players at the time (indeed, Williams had only played non-league football), they essentially headed everything away at one end and caused chaos at the other.

Come forward two years. In the last six games, all won, something very similar has happened, albeit with two established 6'4" giants.

The Reds were under an aerial bombardment from various teams during this run, and in that time, the aerial win% stats of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté have gone through the roof.

And while Konaté has looked a little shaky at times this season, his overall stats – for ground duels as well – are elite. (Both centre-backs will benefit from an improved midfield, too.)

Plus, a certain guy between the sticks ranks in the highest percentile for the stat that matters – not clean sheets (as that's a defensive stat too, and a team stat as you won't get many clean sheets if only your defenders defend), but the one advanced xG-related statistic that keepers should be judged on: saves judged against precise shot placement.

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