“Un-be-lievable” was how Arne Slot summed up Dominik Szoboszlai‘s influence in his Liverpool midfield, after the Hungarian scored in their 4-1 win over Ipswich.
Szoboszlai has, partly due to comments from Slot himself, come under the microscope this season for his involvement in front of goal.
The No. 8 has been far from prolific or particularly creative since his arrival from RB Leipzig in 2023, with 11 goals in 74 games for his current club compared to, for example, 15 in 51 for Hungary.
But the role he is performing in Slot’s midfield asks more than simply finishing chances or laying them on for his teammates.
Though deployed as a No. 10, Szoboszlai is relied upon as the lungs in the middle of the park for Liverpool – but on Saturday, he added to that with the opening goal in the 4-1 thrashing of Ipswich.
Asked in his post-match press conference about an increase in Szoboszlai’s involvement in attack, Slot replied: “I think that’s the development the team is in.
“Because when we played Brentford we had 37 shots, a record in the Premier League for an away team. And then, because he’s involved in that team, he will probably take a few shots then as well.
“So it is us, the players behind the ball, bringing our attacking players even more in promising positions than we did in the beginning of the season.
“Then if you zoom in on Dom, I think in the beginning of the season he would have played that ball to Mo.
“Which was, for the most part, a very good choice because Mo can definitely score a goal as well!
“And now he decided to go for himself and scored the goal himself.”
While Szoboszlai’s finish from outside the box was only his fourth in 29 games this season, he evidently offers much more to balance out the lack of end product.
“[It was] nice for him, because he’s, in my opinion, a bit underestimated,” Slot said of his goal.
“Not by me, but he doesn’t always get the credit for the fact he’s very important for this team.
“Because his work rate is un-be-lievable. He just keeps on running with the highest intensity and that is so important for a team that wants to compete for something.”
With Curtis Jones currently sidelined through injury and Harvey Elliott yet to be trusted as a starter in the Premier League or Champions League, there will be a heightened pressure on Szoboszlai to perform.
There should be no concern there, with Slot convinced he has one of the best midfielders around in the 24-year-old.
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