It is already becoming an afterthought.
During post-match breakdowns between Liverpool supporters where every moment is dissected, the performance, and the brilliance, of Dominik Szoboszlai get mentioned only momentarily.
“Szoboszlai was great again, wasn’t he?” Plenty of agreement. Move on.
They are the standards he has set since his arrival in the summer. An excellent performance is his benchmark and he has barely dropped below that level.
Saturday’s 2-0 win over Everton at Anfield was no different. Despite never having played in this famous fixture before, the 22-year-old Hungarian took to the Merseyside derby like a duck to water, just as he has to Premier League football.
(Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
And while Mohamed Salah’s two goals will grab the headlines, Szoboszlai produced another man-of-the-match performance. He may not be a regular goalscorer or assist provider but, week in and week out, his fingerprints are all over Liverpool’s displays.
Only Trent Alexander-Arnold (120) and Virgil van Dijk (116) had more touches than Szoboszlai’s 108 on Saturday, while his 93 per cent pass accuracy was only bettered by fellow Liverpool midfielder Ryan Gravenberch (96 per cent) of the outfield starters. His touch map shows not only his influence but how he impacts a game across the full width of the pitch.
Szoboszlai demonstrated this repeatedly in the opening 10 minutes.
Barely two minutes in, he drops deep to receive the ball from Ibrahima Konate and quickly lays it off to Alexander-Arnold.
The pair exchange passes, releasing the Englishman into space.
As Alexander-Arnold approaches the Everton box, he is dispossessed; unsurprisingly, the first on the scene to try to win the ball back is Szoboszlai.
He uses channelled aggression to unsettle Dwight McNeil, and forces him to dribble out of play.
Szoboszlai’s athleticism makes him just as important in Liverpool’s off-the-ball work as when they have it. He has an energy to match his powerful physique. In the recent 2-2 draw with Brighton, his counter-pressing led to both Liverpool goals.
Everton’s chosen style is at the other end of the scale to Brighton’s, so high counter-pressing opportunities were few and far between on Saturday, but Szoboszlai’s enthusiasm and desire means he regularly sets the team’s tempo.
After regaining possession, 30 seconds later, he is in the thick of the action again. This time, he receives the ball on the edge of the penalty area, surrounded by blue shirts. There’s no panic, no rash decisions. Instead, he demonstrates vision to spot the run of Salah and dinks the ball into the Egyptian’s path, only to see Salah uncharacteristically slice his attempted volley.
Six minutes later, he is spearheading Liverpool again. This time, Szoboszlai wins a header from a defensive free kick and chases after it, beating Everton players who started closer to the ball.
Szoboszlai’s clipped ball forward is just behind Salah…
…but no matter, as he follows up and latches onto his own pass, going from defence to attack in mere seconds.
There are periods during games where Szoboszlai looks like the perfect figure for a Jurgen Klopp team, through both his passing range and his ball-carrying ability. In full flight, he is difficult to stop, as he moves with the ball at speed and purpose.
As Liverpool break here from a corner, Szoboszlai receives a pass on the edge of his own penalty area and, within seven seconds, he has Liverpool just outside the Everton 18-yard box.
Despite operating at top speed, he chooses the right option, delivering a perfectly-weighted pass into the path of Luis Diaz…
…only an excellent last-ditch tackle denies the Colombian.
Szoboszlai thrives in transition and doesn’t only create for others, but also for himself when in possession between the lines.
There is a fine line between taking too many shots from distance and giving the opposition something to think about. Szoboszlai’s quality from long range means he wants to take such opportunities on and trusts his technique. Three of his five goal attempts in Saturday’s game came in the period between Ashley Young’s 37th-minute red card and the half-time whistle.
What stands out is how he manufactures the shooting chances for himself. His third and best effort saw him drift between the lines to receive possession before turning away from Amadou Onana.
Szoboszlai then drives back towards the right and unleashes an effort that flies just over Jordan Pickford’s crossbar.
Towards the end of the second half, the game begins to open up with Liverpool in front and having played with an extra man for close to an hour.
In this next example, Szoboszlai dances away from two challenges…
…to open up another shooting opportunity. This time, though, his execution is poor.
Having that threat from the edge of the area can open up options too. One of the better openings Liverpool worked was when, instead of shooting, Szoboszlai opened his body up to slide in Alexander-Arnold, whose low ball across the box was missed by everybody.
If he’s not driving the attack himself, Szoboszlai’s stamina means he is invariably leading the charge to support whoever is on the ball.
Even in the final stages on Saturday, as substitute Darwin Nunez and Salah combine for Liverpool’s clinching second goal, trailing slightly behind them is Szoboszlai, still full of energy and running.
It is not all about his running.
Szoboszlai has struck up a strong friendship with Alexander-Arnold, and if Liverpool’s (nominal) right-back is not pulling the strings and delivering cross-field balls, the former RB Leipzig man probably is.
In this instance, Szoboszlai finds Diaz with a pinpoint pass…
…and his energy means he is there to receive the return pass and complete a somewhat stretched one-two.
The pitch has now opened up and Szoboszlai is very close to playing the perfect pass in behind for the advancing Alexander-Arnold.
Liverpool enjoyed 77 per cent possession against their city rivals, aided by having that extra man from late in the first half. Aside from the swashbuckling runs and eye-catching creativity, Szoboszlai is a calm head on young shoulders and is happy to keep play ticking over.
Saturday’s game was the third time he has broken the 100-touch mark in his first nine Premier League starts. Across all Premier League midfielders, only Manchester City’s Rodri and Enzo Fernandez of Chelsea (four times) have done so on more occasions this season, while Tottenham’s Yves Bissouma has also done it on three occasions.
Szoboszlai is comfortable dropping deeper and allowing Alexander-Arnold or Alexis Mac Allister to push forward.
The game understandably changed following Young’s red card. Everton retreated into a deep 5-3-1 formation that limited transition opportunities. Szoboszlai switched from being the right-sided No 8 to the left, following Harvey Elliott’s introduction just after the hour.
GO DEEPER
Liverpool continue to show tactical mastery of a season laden with red cards
Szoboszlai’s pass map reflects the change in the game, with a number of his passes coming just outside Everton’s penalty area as he played his part in trying to break down their impressively stubborn defence. In the end, it was Szoboszlai’s ball that released Diaz down the left to drive into the box and win the crucial penalty via Michael Keane’s handball.
While Szoboszlai’s performances are not going under the radar, the “Wow!” factor surrounding some of the things he does are already becoming normalised because he is doing them so frequently.
Go through all of his appearances this season and the themes are consistent.
If he keeps combining simple moments with the spectacular, it will soon be impossible for anyone to undervalue his contributions.
(Top photo: Jan Kruger/Getty Images)
