Alisson believes he feels the ‘most comfortable’ he has felt at any club in his career when passing the ball out as the Liverpool squad encourages him to play as their extra option.
The Brazilian has seen more of the ball than most Premier League goalkeepers have so far this season. Over Alisson’s 27 appearances, the 29-year-old has completed 748 of his 877 total passes, per SofaScore. Only Brighton ace Robert Sanchez (753) has completed more.
Only Sanchez (1,075) and Leeds United’s shot-stopper Illan Meslier (878) have attempted more than Alisson (877) has so far, too. While Kasper Schmeichel has likewise played 877 altogether, but the 35-year-old has only found a Leicester City teammate from 595.
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Alisson has no qualms offering Liverpool an extra option to play possession out from the back having grown up in similar systems. The Brazilian notes how one of his former youth coaches sought to take inspiration from Pep Guardiola’s iconic tiki-taka Barcelona side.
Victor Valdes offered the Blaugrana an extra option by starting their attacks from the back with the centre-halves. Alisson then further honed his trade in the role at Roma, but took his ability to another level following his £67m move to Anfield under Jurgen Klopp in 2018.
Alisson feels ‘most comfortable’ at Liverpool as players want him to be involved
Alisson believes he has the skill to play from the back if that is how Klopp wants Liverpool to play. But it is the trust from his Merseyside teammates that gives the 51-cap Brazil ace the confidence to pick the right pass, as they encourage him to provide an extra option.
“I have the skills that are needed, but I worked a lot on it when I was playing for my youth team,” Alisson told the Reds club website. “I had a manager once who loved the Guardiola team from Barcelona which used the goalkeeper a lot.
“So, he tried to do that with his team in the U20s and it helped me a lot. Then I went to Rome and improved a little bit. But here, at Liverpool, is the place that I feel most comfortable because the players really want me to be an extra player on the pitch.”
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