Arne Slot has a fix for how to stop Jeremy Doku, but Liverpool fans might not like it - opinion
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If Liverpool are to progress in the FA Cup at Manchester City’s expense on Saturday, then stopping Jeremy Doku will be key.The Belgian is not the most prolific of attackers, but as he showed during November’s 3-0 win over the Reds, he can be the catalyst to City coming out on top.Doku was unstoppable that day, causing Conor Bradley all sorts of problems before lashing in a brilliant goal. Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images Frimpong and Szoboszlai can stop Doku dangerGiven how good he was in November, Slot may have been anticipating that he would be asked about Doku ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final, and he certainly gave a well-thought-out answer.“I did my homework quite well for this game, but I have to disagree with you about Doku’s performance last time, because the year before he was even better!” the Dutchman laughed.
If it’s one-v-one then he’s probably one of the best out there and that’s a big quality to have for a team. The amount of times I’ve said here one on one quality can make a difference against teams who defend in a low block, so it’s a vital quality.”Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesREAD MORE: Arne Slot explains why Alexander Isak’s Liverpool situation is ‘even more complicated’ before Man City clash“We have to make sure our defender is not as isolated as he was the last time we played them.
He has had some wonderful moments against Pep Guardiola’s team, and one more on Saturday would be extra sweet.However, part of the reason Bradley found Doku so difficult last time out was because he had little support from the Egyptian. As Slot says, Liverpool must have learnt some lessons from being continually outmanoeuvred by the Belgium international.Salah has become a factor in that, and though fans will want to see him attempt to terrorise Guardiola one last time – and nobody wants to see Szoboszlai moved from centre-midfield again – Slot must show that he’s learned from the past two seasons and try to make Liverpool more robust on the right.There is no magic fix here, but playing Salah ahead of a slightly suspect defender in Frimpong looks like a recipe for disaster.