Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s career revival from the fringes of Arsenal to the spotlight of Anfield significantly moved up another level on Wednesday night.
The 24-year-old delivered a performance of such bustling intensity against Manchester City that it was impossible to recognise him as the same player wasting away under Arsene Wenger in North London.
He was superb all evening and his breath-taking goal was a reward for the sort of display that vindicated Jurgen Klopp’s decision to bring him out of blurred obscurity and firmly into focus.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain delivered a sensational performance against Manchester City
Many pundits, including Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, scoffed at Liverpool paying £35million for Oxlade-Chamberlain in August. Henry claimed ‘I still don’t know what he’s good at,’ when he departed the Emirates while Gary Neville said he’d ‘snap your hand off’ for the money the Gunners were offered.
Both were piercing assessments that lose any substance with each game Oxlade-Chamberlain plays. Klopp has unleashed him in the centre of midfield, a role he cried out for at Arsenal, and the Englishman has seamlessly fit as another cog in the German’s gegenpressing steam train.
He is no longer stuck out on the wing waiting for attacks to work their way towards him. Oxlade-Chamberlain is now in the fast lane, orchestrating play when in possession and hunting down enemies when he’s not.
Mohamed Salah’s opening goal against Newcastle last month is a defining snapshot of what the Ox has brought to Liverpool. A direct break from the heart of midfield before shrugging off Mo Diame was impressive enough but to then display the technical brilliance to delicately slip in his Egyptian team-mate for the 32nd of his mind-boggling season encapsulates his qualities.
He was superb all evening and his breath-taking goal was a reward for his exceptional display
Oxlade-Chamberlain latched onto a loose ball and fired a fierce shot into the net from distance
It was the same on Wednesday evening as Liverpool bombarded Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions-elect in a savage first-half battering that has given the Reds a significant advantage going into next week’s Champions League quarter-final second leg.
Before kick-off at Anfield it was easy to worry about Liverpool’s midfield inferiority, but in reality there was no need for concern. Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Ilkay Gundogan and Fernandinho are waltzing their way to a Premier League title but under the lights and in front of a raucous Kop they were torn apart.
Led by Oxlade-Chamberlain and supported by Jordan Henderson and James Milner, Klopp’s midfield ran all over their opponents. They were everywhere and delivered a series of brutal pressing punches that left City’s playmakers winded all night.
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s goal was born out of that intensity. A tussle in midfield went Liverpool’s way and Milner fed his team-mate who took a chance with a shot from 25 yards – a chance that paid off as Ederson grasped at air and watched the ball fizz into his net.
‘It was a good strike. The space just opened up for me,’ Oxlade-Chamberlain said post-match. ‘I’ve been working on that, on trying to do it more often. I showed myself that if it’s on more often I can keep doing it.’
The midfielder harried City all night as Liverpool ran riot in the Champions League clash
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp praises Oxlade-Chamberlain’s performance after the game
It was a display that also showed Oxlade-Chamberlain is right in contention for a starting berth in Gareth Southgate’s England team this summer. If the manager is to pick two attack-minded midfielders in front of a deeper playmaker then the Ox has proven he is the man to play alongside either Jesse Lingard or Dele Alli.
His unrelenting energy and attacking intricacy will be useful in unlocking Panama and Tunisia while he proved on Wednesday night that he has struck fear into Vincent Kompany and his Belgian colleague De Bruyne.
Anfield stood in unison and applauded Oxlade-Chamberlain when he was replaced with five minutes left to play. It was a brief rest and the ovation was a sign of a successful evening before Saturday’s Merseyside derby and next week’s second leg.
As the full-time whistle sounded Klopp jubilantly ran onto the pitch to hug every one of his players. There is no doubt that Wenger must have been watching on and wishing it was his arms that were still wrapped around Oxlade-Chamberlain.