The transfer window is shaping up to be a good one for Liverpool fans. The window hasn’t opened yet and Liverpool have already announced their second signing. It comes in the form of the young German midfielder Emre Can. Many of the fans were weary of this signing as he is not known as a star in the making, but fear not Liverpool fans. Emre Can, can be a star for Liverpool F.C.
Personally I do not believe that Can is ready for a starting berth but I do believe that he will play a big part in this season. This is due to the many competitions the Reds are taking part in and his versatility. He can play almost anywhere on the pitch, it is one of the most alarming statistics I saw when researching him. Last season, he played left-back, centre-back, defensive-midfield, attacking-midfield, central-midfield and finally left-midfield. He did all of this whilst playing for Bayer Leverkusen, an established Champions League team. This astonishes me; some players try to improve for so long in one position. They work on things to improve themselves in that position. Emre is improving whilst interchanging between positions consistently. He mostly plays left-back and centre-mid but the ability to play so many different positions is one that would have attracted Brendan instantly.
Before I make a judgement on how he plays, I came to the conclusion of where he will play most of his football for Liverpool. Considering the German mostly plays left-back I thought there but with Alberto Moreno coming in I think that he will now play his football right in the centre of the park. I also believe that this will be where he prospers the most and will come into his own. For Leverkusen he plays left-back because of the lack of depth they possess in that position, but most of his attributes are shown in the heart of midfield and Brendan knows that.
The positives to his game outweigh the negatives so let’s start with the positives. Firstly, he is one of the only box to box players left, many players depend too heavily on their defensive flair and vice versa; Emre can depend on both. The second positive is that he is a very physical player, he likes to dominate the middle of the pitch. Receive the ball and drive forward, get involved in the play and let the opposition know that he is there. This is a great weapon to have in your game as it means that you will fight for your team and consistently put your body on the line. The last of the positives and one that is less likely to be noticed is his awareness of teammates. He can often look up and thread through a pass or find a hole in the defence to give it to the main attackers. He is not an outright playmaker and this is the reason why this would be noticed less compared to some of the other parts of his game.
The most notable negative is his goals to games ratio. He is not a match winner. In 29 appearances he has 3 goals and the same amount of assists to match. This could be to the variety of positions Can played but if he is going to make his mark in the Liverpool midfield he needs to raise his tally in that department. The other negative is his disciplinary record – when you compare it to the amount of games he played – is appalling. In the 27 games he has earned himself 13 yellows and one red. I would put this down to the player’s personality, he wears his heart on his sleeve. If the game is not going his team’s way he will fly into challenges and try to find a short-term solution. I don’t see this as a problem with Brendan in charge; Brendan has the managerial qualities to turn a negative like that into a positive.
So, a young talent from Germany who has captained his side at youth level various times cost Liverpool less than 10 million pounds. Is he worth it? Of course. It is an improvement on the team’s current options and Bayern Munich previously had that buy back option for a reason. They know how good Emre Can could be and Liverpool knows it too.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow Anfield Alive (@AnfieldAlive) on Twitter – @LWOSDemetriSmith and @a_sidd8. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter –@LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands of fans at r/football.
photo credit
