Michael Owen says he was ‘encouraged’ by the debut performances of Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister during Liverpool’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.
The former Liverpool striker labelled Dominik Szoboszlai an ‘unsung hero’ for the part he played in Luis Diaz opening the scoring yesterday.
Whilst it was Mo Salah who provided a quite stunning assist for Diaz to slot home from yards out, Owen thinks that it was a ‘lovely team goal’ that involved Szoboszlai and also Alexis Mac Allister, as he told Premier League Productions (13/08/23 at 6:30 pm).
After last season’s troubles, this was a new dawn for Liverpool’s midfield players, with a total of five players leaving this summer, including Fabinho and Jordan Henderson moving to Saudi Arabia.
Whilst the Anfield faithful were pleased with the arrivals of Szoboszlai and Mac Allister, they expected and want more, with this Moises Caicedo saga proving to be a shambles.
Either way, Owen was keen to highlight two of Liverpool’s new boys yesterday, as the Reds started off their 2023/24 campaign with a point.
“A little unsung hero there, Szoboszlai pass,’ said Owen. “He was under pressure and he is coming to the ball. A little lay-off, it’s a dangerous area of the pitch in the centre and he lays it off beautifully. It was a lovely team goal.
“The two players that did play – Szoboszlai and Mac Allister. It was encouraging. This is a tough place to go. Don’t be fooled by them coming 12th in the league last season. This is a very, very tough place to go. New manager and new excitement around the place.”
More midfielders needed
It’s a sense of Deja vu for the Liverpool fans because, this time last season, they felt that the team started the campaign light or lacked refreshment in the middle of the park.
And fast forward to the present and they are in not so dissimilar position.
Liverpool only have themselves to blame and those running the club because it has been shambolic from the top and it could yet prove to get worse.
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