'Forces a lot of mistake': Aaron Ramsey explains why Liverpool's midfield has been so effective under Arne Slot

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Rewind the clock two years and Liverpool’s midfield was looking in need of major surgery.

It was the middle of the 2022/23 season and the Reds had fallen flat after mounting a serious quadruple push only months before.

A big part of the reason Liverpool were being carved apart week on week was because their midfield simply was not up to scratch.

Fabinho was a terrific player for four years at Anfield, but his final season with the Reds was barely watchable.

With Jordan Henderson also struggling and James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain looking like yesterday’s news, too, the Liverpool squad needed an overhaul.

Thankfully, that’s exactly what they got in the summer of 2023. And having had a year to work under Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool’s additions of that particular transfer market have gone up another level with Arne Slot.

Aaron Ramsey hails Liverpool midfield

Three of the four players Klopp brought in just over a year ago have been Slot’s go-to midfield during the early part of his reign.

Ryan Gravenberch has been a revelation, while Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai have more than played their part as well.

Meanwhile, Curtis Jones has come into form after slowly being introduced and a combination of that quartet has started every Premier League and Champions League game for Slot.

So far that has led to the Liverpool head coach picking up 15 wins out of 17 matches. And when asked by BBC 5 Live’s Planet Premier League show what was so effective about Slot’s midfield, former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey offered an explanation.

READ MORE: Liverpool ‘know’ what happened to make Martin Zubimendi reverse his decision to join them

“I think Liverpool as a whole, as a team, they’ve been relentless,” Ramsey answered. “The distances between the units have been three, four grass cuts maximum.

“The way that they press, when they press, it’s so aggressive. The intensity is there and that goes a long way.

“As soon as you see two or three players sprinting at you, as a player you’re thinking ‘I’m in trouble here,’ or ‘I need to try and get rid of it or do something’ and that forces a lot of mistakes in itself. I think that’s given them a great platform to go on with the players that they’ve got.”

What is Liverpool’s best midfield?

Ironically, midfield was the area where a lot of supporters would like to have seen a little extra recruitment done last summer.

Reports this week have claimed that Liverpool are still interested in Martin Zubimendi, so it could be that Slot is yet to put the finishing touches that he wants here.

Should Zubimendi arrive, it will be fascinating to see what the Dutch coach decides as his best midfield.

There have been claims that had Zubimendi arrived, Gravenberch would have been consigned to the bench. But given how good the 22-year-old has been, he now feels like a certain starter.

With Mac Allister the second most used midfielder this season, it also feels unlikely that the Argentine would be sacrificed. That poses a real dilemma for Slot.

Without any additions until January at least, though, who’s in Liverpool’s strongest midfield is a bit of a moot point. As long as a combination of these four players – plus back-up from Wataru Endo and Harvey Elliott once fit – continue to do their job, then things will keep going well.