With Alexis Mac Allister starting his sixth game in 19 days on Thursday night at Atalanta, Jurgen Klopp hinted his “crazy” feat could cost him a place vs. Fulham.
Following the 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday, Klopp admitted that he had been forced to play both Mac Allister and Wataru Endo more than he should have.
But while Endo dropped out of the starting lineup for the second leg of Liverpool’s Europa League quarter-final four days later, the Argentine was retained.
Mac Allister went on to play the full 90 minutes, which he has done in each of the last six games in a ridiculous 19-day run.
With a trip to Fulham to come on Sunday, three days after the loss in Italy, the manager reflected on Mac Allister’s “absolutely insane” feat.
“You saw tonight, Trent Alexander-Arnold, a player we didn’t have for a while now,” Klopp told reporters.
“As long as he was fresh he, together with Macca, set the tempo, the rhythm, the direction of the game.
“Then obviously he was running out of gas a bit.
“Macca had to go through this game, which is crazy, and the way he did it is absolutely insane.”
Mac Allister has clocked 540 minutes – or nine hours – on the pitch in under three weeks, averaging a full game of football every 3.2 days.
Virgil van Dijk is the only other Liverpool player to do so, though his role is less intense than that of a No. 8 or No. 6 in Klopp’s midfield.
With Endo shuffled out against Atalanta, the likelihood is that Mac Allister will be considered for a rest on Sunday at Craven Cottage.
Whether Liverpool can afford to leave the 25-year-old out, however, is a different question, as he has consistently been one of, if not the, best players on the pitch in every game.
Klopp does have other midfield options, with Harvey Elliott a prime candidate and Ryan Gravenberch also available, but the manager has been reluctant to start either of late.
There are only six games left to play now this season following Liverpool’s exit from the Europa League – but while the temptation will be to push the likes of Mac Allister through, Klopp will have to remain sensible.
In his post-match interview with TNT Sports he conceded: “We have to see who can go again.”
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