When thinking about Liverpool’s transfer signings thus far, my line of reasoning has led me back to one phrase: rest defense. The fundamental question is what kind of rest defense can we put together that will allow us to reliably counter-press and sustain pressure? What kind of rest defense can we put together that will allow our attackers to interact the way they should? When analysing the business Liverpool has done so far, we mustn’t presuppose that the likes of Gakpo, Diaz, Nunez, Szoboszlai, and Elliott, in particular, will flourish without the backing of “rest defenders.”
Another thing I’ve been thinking about is this: as soon as Alexander Arnold inverted into midfield, the problems Liverpool had prior in regards to ball progression and ball circulation were somewhat solved. However, him moving into the center has meant the importance of our rest defense has been highlighted even further due to his vertical tendencies on the ball. By virtue of this tendency, you naturally must be ready to defend the center of the pitch more readily. A higher focus on centrality can be seen as the significant shift (if there is any at all) in Liverpool’s playing style. Rather than focusing on wing-play through their fullbacks, they’ve now moved one of their fullbacks into the center while also adding players who are adept at receiving the ball centrally higher up in the half and central spaces — MacAllister, Szoboszlai point to this. But my friends, to facilitate all this pretty stuff, we need an adequate rest defense! So, let’s talk rest defense!
This piece of short writing will seek to succinctly dissect Liverpool’s rest defense and try to provide some direction on improvements and compromises that will allow it to better serve the attacking quintet.
Rest defense is a tactic that helps prevent transitions and counterattacks, which, in turn, helps the team launch their own counterattacks and transitions. In essence, a coherent rest defense allows teams not only to defend attacks via the control of space through optimal positioning but also to start/continue attacks of their own. The rest defense achieves this by maintaining a stable and compact structure when the team is in possession. To help you visualize how this would look on the pitch, here’s a diagram of a common 3–2 rest defense structure, just behind the attacking 5:
Last season, Liverpool’s problems stemmed from not being able to reliably engineer situations where they arrived in the final third with a compact rest defense (via the use of things such as combination play, recognizing and exploiting space, tempo & speed of play, width and depth, positional rotations, overlapping/underlapping overloads, supporting the ball carrier with good angles, and so on…). Additionally, certain players within the rest defense struggled individually, which affected the effectiveness of the rest defense even when it was compact. Nonetheless, the point I’m trying to make here is that this excerpt will be based on the presumption (or hope) that Liverpool can reliably arrive in the final third with a compact rest defense. The aim of this writing is to critique the different parts (players) of the rest defense and how this affects the overall dynamics of the rest defense.
Above is an image of the most likely rest defense line-up Liverpool will be fielding next season. As you can see, two positions are missing: the double 6 and the LCB/LB positions. These are two positions I believe are of high importance in ensuring Liverpool has a good enough rest defense. I’ve been thinking about this rest defense, and it has become obvious to me that there are a few tendencies present that need to be addressed by the aforementioned positions. Here are some of my thoughts on the matter:
When looking at just some of Trent’s tendencies in specific phases of play, it’s clear that the two remaining positions must also provide balance in compensating for potential weaknesses in the overall rest defense. Trent is usually tasked to be the aggressive counter-presser when the ball is lost. However, it is perfectly normal that this could lead to situations where he is bypassed. In such situations, what optimal traits would you want your rest defense to have to counteract this? Here are a few of my suggestions:
- The double 6 must be capable of covering large spaces and anticipating space. This will be especially important in specific game states where Liverpool is chasing a goal, and Trent vacates his position and joins the last line, resulting in a 3–1 structure for the rest defense.
- Having the ability to recover in transitions is a follow-on from the above point. Often, when the ball is lost in the final third and the initial counter-press is beaten, there is still a long distance before the opponent reaches your goal. Players adept at recovering in transitions are key. Gini Wijnaldum is someone that comes to mind.
- The LCB must be able to provide aggressive vertical jumps in specific instances to back up counter-pressing moments when the double pivot is momentarily bypassed.
- The LCB and the double 6 (more so the LCB) must also be capable of providing horizontal agility and channel defending. They must also be great at jockeying when defending against attackers, as in specific instances, the rest defense may not be able to retrieve the ball. Slowing down transitions/counter-attacks is key.
- Horizontal and vertical agility is a recurring theme here. It is essential for the rest defense in regards to maintaining horizontal and vertical compactness.
My line of reasoning behind these suggestions is that I was trying to think about how the different parts of the rest defense can help patch up dangerous situations manifested by a tendency of another part, and vice versa. For example, in an event where Trent aggressively counter-presses without scanning and loses the duel, leaving the double 6 isolated, having a double 6 who can interpret and anticipate situations like this to adjust their defensive positioning to win the ball/slow down the attack will be helpful. Just as in situations where Trent has vacated his position to join the last line when Liverpool needs a goal, having a double 6 capable of covering large spaces and an LCB capable of defending the channels, whether that be 1v1s or even 2v1s, is crucial. In an event where the double pivot both jump to counter-press consecutively down the left side, the LCB being able to provide aggressive vertical jumps will allow the team to sustain pressure even further. If this happens (because of a known tendency of x player), what traits/capabilities do I want x player to have to be able to help out in this phase of play? Anyway, I hope this excerpt makes sense.
Visual analysis:
