Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has expressed his admiration for Liverpool team-mate Thiago Alcantara and praised the 29-year-old’s appetite for football.
The Reds finally brought the Spain international to Anfield last summer after what seemed to be a very long and protracted transfer saga with Bayern Munich.
But Liverpool’s Michael Edwards eventually signed him in a £20 million and when fit, the 29-year-old has oozed class in Jurgen Klopp’s team.
Injury has restricted him to only nine Premier League appearances during his maiden season in England.
The former Bayern and Barcelona midfielder has won virtually everything possible in the club game – including two Champions League titles – but Oxlade-Chamberlain, a £40 million signing from Arsenal in 2017, has revealed that the player’s hunger to improve not only himself, but the team, has left him impressed so far.
Asked whether Thiago deserves a higher rating in FIFA, Oxlade-Chamberlain said to Soccer AM’s YouTube channel: “Have you seen the fella play? Top player, great lad. You can tell he’s been at top clubs. He’s got that mentality where he wants to learn still and win things and help us to push on.”
The reigning Premier League champions are fourth in the table and seven points behind leaders Manchester City.
Their title challenge looks to be fizzling out early, but you wonder just how good Klopp’s side could’ve been this season with a fully-fit Thiago available every week.
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