Arsenal and Newcastle want Edson Alvarez but the Ajax star was given some real problems by Liverpool ace Thiago Alcantara on Tuesday.
Ajax travelled to take on Liverpool on Tuesday evening and held real hope of a positive result at Anfield.
The Dutch giants hammered Rangers 4-0 last week and Liverpool have been struggling to find their top form of late.
Ajax certainly had hope after Mohammed Kudus levelled it up following Mohamed Salah’s opening goal, but they were left heartbroken.
Joel Matip’s late winner handed Liverpool a 2-1 victory and sent Ajax back to Amsterdam empty-handed.
Arsenal and Newcastle want Edson Alvarez
Scouts may well have been flocking to Anfield to go and see some of Ajax’s top talent in action.
Kudus was one of the star attractions but scouts will have also been watching defender Jurrien Timber and midfielder Kenneth Taylor.
Another key man for Ajax was midfielder Edson Alvarez.
The Mexican star featured in a holding midfield role as Ajax went with a 4-2-3-1 system against Liverpool.
Alvarez is retaining a key role in the Ajax side despite strong transfer rumours before the transfer deadline earlier this month.
Reports from Mexico suggested that Newcastle United had failed with an offer to bring Alvarez to St James’ Park.
It was then suggested that Arsenal had joined the race for Alvarez before Chelsea launched a last-gasp move, which ultimately failed.
Alvarez, 24, is a quality holding midfielder and it’s no surprise that he is attracting interest.
Still, Alvarez had a tough challenge on Tuesday as he went up against Liverpool midfielder Thiago Alcantara.
Voetbal International’s Pieter Zwart highlighted that Thiago was causing all sorts of problems for Alvarez.
Zwart noted that Alvarez was stuck between wanting to hold his position or cover Thiago, who would run the game if Alvarez didn’t press him.
Zwart added that Alvarez was therefore out of position for Liverpool’s opening goal, unable to protect his back four having moved up the pitch to be close to Thiago.
That’s something Liverpool exploited well, with Thiago’s movement and immense ability on the ball making him a challenge for anybody.
This will have been a great learning experience for Alvarez, who may well end up facing Thiago in the Premier League one day.
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