Five players Europa League football will benefit
A few weeks ago, Read Liverpool’s own Ste Hoare posted an article on a recent study which outlined the possible disadvantage the Europa League brings to a club; it’s seen by some in England almost as a punishment for their club not being good enough to reach the Champions League.
A constant gripe with Europa League football tends to be the negative effect that the Thursday-Sunday match week has on a team’s league performance, with sides struggling to maintain consistent form domestically as well as on the continent.
I’m here, however, to tell you how Liverpool could take advantage of their inclusion in this year’s Europa League – to tell you why their young squad should relish the opportunity to go face-to-face with some of Europe’s best sides. Here are five players that could benefit from Europa League football this season:
1. Alberto Moreno
Alberto Moreno has already seen success in the final of the Europa League with his former club Sevilla, winning the competition in 2014 after making 14 appearances throughout the competition that year. Moreno moved to Liverpool after his win and has since had brief experiences in both Champions League and Europa League football, and I’m sure he would be relish the opportunity once again to experience success on the continent with the Reds.
The game time could be even more important for the young Spaniard after positive early performances from Joe Gomez, the 18-year-old English defender who arrived at Anfield this summer and has subsequently taken Moreno’s place at left-back in the opening two Premier League matches. Positive European performances could go a long way to proving his worth to Brendan Rodgers and to win his place back in the starting XI.
2. Lazar Markovic
Lazar Markovic has had a much more mixed history in the Europa League. Whilst at Serbian side Partizan Belgrade he failed to win a single game in the Europa League – for two seasons – but had much more success in his one season at Benfica.
Markovic was a solid performer for the Portuguese side in their Europa League run – a run which saw them reach the final to face Moreno’s Sevilla side – but it did not end well for poor Lazar. Markovic’s side lost the final on penalties – however without the Serbian, who was suspended from participating after being sent-off in an off-field scuffle against Juventus in the semi-final.
During Liverpool’s two opening Premier League games, we have not had sight nor sound of the tricky Serbian, who couldn’t even make the bench on both occasions. Providing that he is still at Anfield when the transfer window shuts on September 1, Markovic will have to come to terms with the possibility of being a part of Liverpool’s ‘shadow squad’, taking part in League Cup and Europa League games until he can stake a claim to start for the Reds in the Premier League once again. His performances in Europe this season could be the difference between life and death when it comes to his future Liverpool career.
3. Jordon Ibe
Jordon Ibe’s history in professional European football is virtually non-existent, with the 19-year-old forward only ever making two appearances for the Reds in the Europa League – both against Besiktas last season when Liverpool crashed out of the competition following their Champions League exit.
This lack of experience may be the very reason why Europa League football could do a world of good for the young winger; in challenging himself against some of Europe’s best defenders, Ibe could seek to refine his skills and put them to good use when he inevitably gets chances in the Premier League this season.
Ibe has started both of Liverpool’s opening league games this season, but some would argue that he has been rather uninspired as a part of the forward line so far.
With the likes of Danny Ings, Divock Origi and Liverpool’s second most expensive purchase of the summer, Roberto Firmino, waiting in the wings, Ibe will have to start impressing quickly. The Europa League, however, could be a better way to help Ibe improve his talents without burdening him with the responsibility of becoming the next Raheem Sterling overnight.
4. Divock Origi
Liverpool’s new Belgian forward (not that one) has yet to step foot on the pitch in the opening two Premier League games this season. Divock Origi has been confined to the bench, with international teammate Christian Benteke leading the line for the Reds and taking the headlines with him.
Origi secured a £10m move to Liverpool in the summer of 2014 after having a breakthrough World Cup run for the Belgian national team; after spending the season on loan at former club Lille, he arrived on Merseyside ready to make an impact. Since arriving, however, he’s found himself caught up the fiercely competitive struggle to be a starting forward at Anfield – facing off with Benteke, Ings, and Roberto Firmino, with Daniel Sturridge still to return from injury.
Origi has some prior European experience – playing in the Champions League three times and the Europa League five times for Lille – he even has one Europa League goal to his name. It looks like he will find himself even better acquainted with the challenge of European football this season, and he could find it as a valuable tool to prove himself to Brendan Rodgers, who – for the first time since joining Liverpool – finds himself spoilt for choice when it comes to decent attacking options.
Origi won’t want to languish in the Europa League ‘shadow squad’ for too long, and a decent string of performances in Europe could see him feature more in the Premier League – just ask Tottenham’s Harry Kane.
5. Danny Ings
Like Origi, Ings has yet to play any competitive football for Liverpool in the opening two Premier League games. He nearly got on, God bless him, but Phil Coutinho went and scored that worldie at Stoke, and Danny Ings’ opportunity to make a first appearance fell to pieces.
He finds himself in the exact same position as Origi, too, though he perhaps has a slight advantage due to his experience at Premier League level; he scored just the 11 goals for Burnley last season, more than a third of their entire goals total. He may be reliant upon European and domestic cup football as a medium to showcase his talents and stake a claim to start some league games for the Reds.
Of course, playing European football in itself brings its own advantages and experiences which will be a great learning curve for a player like Danny Ings, as well as it being the pinnacle of his career so far – so he might as well enjoy it too.
The closest he has ever been to European football before are his two appearances in the Dorset Senior Cup whilst on loan at Dorchester Town in 2010; that’s close enough, right? He bagged a goal there, so let’s hope he can make the most of his time in the Europa League and – along with the other players – take Liverpool on another great European cup run.