Brendan Rodgers’ dismissal as Liverpool coach back in October could well have spelt the end of Joe Allen’s career at Anfield. The Wales international performed admirably upon Swansea’s promotion to the Premier League, gaining a WhoScored rating of 7.14 in his debut campaign at the club with Rodgers at the helm. The Reds hierarchy were clearly impressed with the 42-year-old’s work at the Liberty Stadium, with Allen a key member of the team that consolidated their spot among England’s elite. A little over two months after the Northern Irishman was confirmed as Reds boss, Allen joined Liverpool.
Rodgers’ sacking, though, suggested that the Welshman could well follow him out of the Anfield exit door. As Jurgen Klopp favours energy and tenacity in midfield, Lucas Leiva, Emre Can and Jordan Henderson were deemed by many as the ideal trio to match his high pressing needs in the middle of the park. Indeed, Allen didn't immediately seem like the type of midfielder who would be particularly well suited to the German’s demands. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old is instead proving that is not the case.
Lucas, Can and Henderson are more than capable of robbing the opposition of possession, but Allen is beginning to offer the sort of penetrative ability the majority felt that he lacked in order to add an extra dimension to the midfield. As good as the aforementioned trio may be at winning possession for their team, Allen is cutting it with the best of them, carrying the ball forward and adhering to the pass and move demands of Klopp.
As such, he is able to not only successfully retain possession for his team, but push the side forward as Liverpool look to break down the opposition. While not quite in the same mould as Ilkay Gundogan for Borussia Dortmund, Klopp has at his disposal a player now seemingly willing to operate in a more box-to-box role than he had become accustomed to. It’s an underrated aspect of Allen's game, having often been thought of as little more than the “water carrier” for his team.
Yet, he offers so much more than that, particularly with Klopp at the helm. The German’s demand to press the opposition as soon as they encroach on the midfield - the ‘medium block’, as Spurs boss Maurico Pochettino dubbed it, a not too dissimilar approach to his side’s own press - perhaps suits Allen’s game perfectly in that he is able to sit back and wait for the chance to strike.
The Welshman indeed does so when it’s required of him. Of players to make at least five Premier League appearances this season, only Alex Song (one every 15.7 minutes) is making a tackle more frequently than Allen (one every 16 minutes). Indeed this benefits Klopp’s style of play. The aim is to soak up pressure under the German with the team then breaking forward in numbers in order to swarm the opposition.
Allen, in theory, is crucial to this. He can win the ball for his side and either carry possession upfield or relinquish the ball to one of the quicker attacking players, be it one of the full-backs or the offensive performers who have dropped deeper to support the midfield. For example, with the technically gifted Roberto Firmino deployed as a false-9 under Klopp, the Brazilian is more than capable of coming closer to the midfield to collect possession as a means of finding space between the lines.
While injuries played a part in Allen's inability to re-establish himself as key member in a Rodgers system, he is beginning to turn a the corner with Klopp at the helm. Back-to-back goals in appearances against Arsenal and Exeter - the first time he has managed the feat since October 2011 - will have propelled him into the thoughts of his new manager, with his late equaliser against the Gunners re-endearing Allen to Liverpool supporters.
While an unused sub in the 1-0 defeat to Manchester United, perhaps unfairly so, Allen is a solid midfielder to call on when Liverpool are struggling to break teams down. The introductions of Christian Benteke and Steven Caulker following Wayne Rooney’s goal showed Klopp’s intention to go more direct, which would have been a waste of Allen’s talents in the encounter.
Nonetheless, his knack for getting the ball on the deck and keeping things ticking over should not be overlooked. The club’s decision to reportedly rebuff an approach from Swansea shows Allen still has a role to play for Liverpool under Klopp. He may not be a midfielder to single-handedly drag the Reds to victory, akin to Steven Gerrard, but it seems Allen still has a part to play in the middle of the park for Liverpool in their quest to return to the Champions League.
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