This season, the gifted young player has made appearances for the first team.
On Boxing Day, Liverpool will play again in the Premier League this evening when they leave Anfield to play Burnley at Turf Moor.After the Reds and Arsenal drew 1-1 on Merseyside on Saturday, Jurgen Klopp will have to make at least one alteration to his starting lineup for this game.
Left-back Following a collision with Bukayo Saka and subsequently with Klopp, which left the Greek international with a broken collarbone, Kostas Tsimikas is expected to be sidelined for an extended duration.
Joe Gomez replaced Andy Robertson at left-back against the Gunners and performed admirably, considering that Robertson is also out until January at the latest.Klopp may, however, lessen the impact of this most recent injury setback and give his team balance down the left by letting academy prospect Callum Scanlon go from the outset.Numbers from Tsimikas’ seasonIn Robertson’s absence, the unfortunate Tsimikas had been having a great run with the club thanks to his reliable performances on the left.The 27-year-old star has made eight starts in the Premier League this year, contributing three assists and creating two “big chances.”
During those eight games for the Reds, he also recorded 2.5 combined tackles and interceptions, as well as 4.
3 ball recoveries per game, demonstrating that the gifted player had an effect on both ends of the field.As shown by his three assists in eight games, Tsimikas is a naturally left-footed player who can give breadth when he bursts forward; Liverpool will not receive that if they play a right-footed player out of place.Since Scanlon has only been used as a substitute twice this season in the top division, Klopp may find it advantageous to boldly unleash him from the start.Reasons why Klopp need to let Scanlon go vs BurnleyThe 18-year-old wizard has already made two appearances in the Europa League group stages this season, giving him first-team experience.In his two appearances as a substitute, he played 52 minutes and recorded an impressive five ball recoveries, which is 0.7 more than Tsimikas’s average per Premier League game. He also had an 89% pass accuracy rate. This demonstrates his ability to perform under pressure in a senior setting.Once described as “lightning quick” by one-on-one coach Jamie Atkins, Scanlon could launch an offensive thrust down the left wing over the overlap, giving Darwin Nunez or Luis Diaz a diversion before cutting inside onto their better foot.His skill with the ball was shown in the Football League Trophy earlier this season, as he finished with 2.5 tackles, five ball recoveries, and one goal in two games.The Liverpool kid, who has eight England U19 caps under his belt, has proven both attacking and defensive for the academy and first team, so it’s possible that he’s ready to make his Premier League debut against Burnley.In addition to allowing Gomez to fill in at centre back or right back if necessary, Scanlon would be Klopp’s logical choice at left back until Robertson returns the following month. This would prevent Gomez from being out of place on the left.