Jurgen Klopp labels Alexis Mac Allister as “manager’s pet” ahead to Old Trafford clash
Alexis Mac Allister has started to establish himself as a first-pick midfielder for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp. The 2022 World Cup winner has been directly involved in nine league goals this season with four goals and five assists. Recently, he scored a banger when restoring Liverpool’s lead over Sheffield United at Anfield in a 3-1 victory.
The quality that Mac Allister has brought to Liverpool team has impressed gaffer Jurgen Klopp. “The Normal One” admitted the player’s understanding of football, praising his personality off the pitch as well.
“How can you not love a player like him?” Klopp told the Sky. “Or a boy like him? He’s incredible. He’s educated in the best possible way. He’s really polite, confident, funny, smart – and an incredible footballer. Oh my God!”
Alexis Mac Allister establishes himself in Liverpool’s midfield
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Mac Allister has started in the last 10 league games for the Reds after suffering a knee injury in December. Klopp said that he was a bit surprised with what Mac Allister has shown during the training, especially when it comes to dealing with players from South America.
“You watch training sessions and the coaches look at each other like, ‘Wow, what was that?’ And only from time to time you see it in games as well – [because] first and foremost we train still more often than we play.
“How he interacts with the other boys, how he took the South American outfield player department under his wings naturally, without telling them what to do but just how they came together. It’s wonderful.
Klopp: Alexis Mac Allister eats and breathes football
Klopp knew that Mac Allister would become an important player for Liverpool this season from day one. One of the reasons was because the Santa Rosa-born grew up with a thick football influence within his family.
“I loved it from the first moment when we met before we signed him and when I met then his dad,” Klopp added. “The football understanding in his family is obviously second to none: dad a former professional, uncle a former professional, brothers professionals, cousins professionals. So they all eat and breathe football, and that’s so good.
“Of course I love him. I don’t know where the boys get it from that he’s kind of the manager’s pet or favourite because I have a lot of them, but yes, he’s definitely one of them!”