Liverpool’s centre-back options are beginning to look increasingly promising, with Jérémy Jacquet emerging as one of the most exciting young defenders at Andoni Iraola’s disposal. Alongside Virgil van Dijk, Ronald Araújo and the upcoming arrival of Giovanni Leoni, Liverpool now have plenty of defensive depth to work with.
Jérémy Jacquet has continued to show plenty of promising signs since arriving at Liverpool, and even the praise coming from French football legend Zinedine Zidane has highlighted just how impressive the young defender has been.
Zidane’s description of Jacquet as “very, very good” speaks volumes. At just 21, Jacquet already looks comfortable at the highest level and has shown the composure, confidence and defensive maturity needed to compete for an important role at Liverpool.
His emergence also gives Andoni Iraola an interesting selection problem in the centre of defence.
liverpool currently have several strong options available, with Virgil van Dijk providing experience and leadership, while Ronald Araújo offers physicality, versatility and aggression. Jacquet is quickly making his own case for regular involvement, while Giovanni Leoni is expected to join the first-team group later this month and could add another exciting young option to the defensive unit.
That leaves Iraola with four centre-backs who can all potentially contribute throughout a long and demanding season.
The challenge now will be managing those options effectively. With the Premier League, Champions League and domestic competitions all demanding different levels of rotation, there should be opportunities for each defender to play a meaningful role.
Competition for places could also be beneficial for the squad. No defender can afford to become complacent when there are quality alternatives waiting for an opportunity.
For Jacquet in particular, the next stage will be proving that his impressive early performances can be maintained consistently over an entire season. If he continues developing at this rate, Iraola may have a very difficult decision to make when selecting his preferred centre-back pairing.
Liverpool’s defensive depth is certainly beginning to look promising.
Now we get to see how Iraola manages his four centre-backs across what could be a very busy season.
https://www.liverpool.com/liverpool-fc-news/features/giovanni-leoni-looking-strong-after-34710840
