LONDON • While an untimely series of injuries has left Jurgen Klopp short-handed at the back, the Liverpool manager knows in Fabinho, he has a player as comfortable in defence as he is in midfield.
Trent Alexander-Arnold joined a growing casualty list after suffering a knee injury during last weekend's 1-0 win at Brighton, and could be out for up to a month. The decision to loan Nathaniel Clyne to Bournemouth for the season has been questioned, with Joe Gomez and Dejan Lovren still working their way back to fitness.
But, while Joel Matip is expected to be back in the squad for today's Premier League game at home to Crystal Palace since fracturing his collarbone during their Champions League win over Napoli on Dec 11, Klopp can afford to resist throwing him into the fray given Fabinho's "defensive brain".
It has taken the Brazil midfielder, signed in the summer for £39 million (S$68.4 million), time to adapt to English football. He made his league debut only in October, but Klopp never had any doubts the "brilliant player" would become a vital cog as Liverpool chase their first league title in 29 years.
The German said: "To have a good footballer in that position when you have the ball is great. He can play in a lot of positions."
The 25-year-old, who was instrumental alongside Virgil van Dijk in defence as the Reds kept a 13th clean sheet in 22 league games at the Amex Stadium to maintain a four-point cushion over champions Manchester City, also saw his switch to "centre-back coming".
He told the club website: "Some weeks ago, I knew this could be an option because we had some players injured. I had some training sessions playing in that position, which helped me adapt better and pick up aspects like positioning and movements."
Another player who will have a key role in helping the table-toppers maintain the league's best defensive record - only 10 goals conceded - against Roy Hodgson's men is left-back Andy Robertson.
The Scotland captain was rewarded on Thursday with a new contract until 2024, after a string of fine performances to cement his starting position in the team.
Klopp said the 24-year-old, who "screams Liverpool", put pen to paper "in almost record time", and Robertson revealed the decision was a "no-brainer".
He said: "I want to stay. As soon as they put an offer on the table, it was signed as quickly as that."
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
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Fandi Ahmad was a proud coach and father, after watching his Singapore Under-22 side deliver a composed 3-0 Merlion Cup win over the Philippines last night with his two sons among the goalscorers. The semi-final win sends the Young Lions into tomorrow's final against Thailand, who beat Indonesia 2-1 earlier at the Jalan Besar Stadium yesterday.
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For more than 70 minutes, Tampines Rovers defended resolutely and looked on course to record a morale-boosting AFC Cup win over Hanoi FC despite their fatigue and injury problems.
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Citing Vietnam's success with the unheralded South Korean coach Park Hang-seo, he said: "Park was relatively unknown until his first senior national team job with Vietnam in 2017, and their amazing run in which he led them to the AFF Suzuki Cup title last year and the quarter-finals of this year's Asian Cup.
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