Liverpool’s players will follow Thiago’s example, says Reds assistant Lijnders

Pep Lijnders believes the signing of Thiago Alcantara can fundamentally raise the level of Liverpool’s performances this season.

The Reds assistant says the Spanish international’s presence will provide “direct and indirect improvements” at Anfield, with other players encouraged to follow the former Bayern Munich man’s lead.

Thiago enjoyed an encouraging introduction to English football last weekend, emerging off the bench for the second half of Liverpool’s 2-0 win at Chelsea.

Although he conceded a penalty – saved by Alisson Becker – the 29-year-old managed to set a new Premier League record of passes completed in a single half; a sign of things to come, Reds fans will hope.

Discussing Thiago on Wednesday, at a press conference to preview Liverpool’s Carabao Cup tie at Lincoln, Lijnders stated that the team “deserves a player like him”, and explained how his way of playing will have a knock-on effect for those around him.

He said: “With signings you have direct improvements – you put them into the game and things happen – but indirect development is the most important of signings. 

“Because [Thiago] is so calm and he plays so many creative passes, all the other players start playing like that. This is the power of example, the power of models. He will not only improve our game but improve all the other players.”

Liverpool are yet to decide whether Thiago, or indeed fellow new signing Diogo Jota, will feature against Lincoln, the early leaders of League One.

Lijnders hinted on Wednesday that the Reds team will be stronger than many suspect, though we can expect to see the squad utilised, with the likes of Kostas Tsimikas, James Milner, Curtis Jones and Takumi Minamino all likely to feature.

Asked if Thiago would be spared the trip to Sincil Bank, Lijnders smiled.

“The German [League Cup] competition is like this as well,” he said. “A lot of times when you draw a third division club in Germany you play away, that’s how they try to help, so he knows these kind of teams. 

“Thiago needs time to understand our game but we also need to understand and use the skills of Thiago. There will be different timings, different passes, different dictation of play.

“We have to stay unpredictable and Thiago gives us unpredictability from the spine of the pitch. We want hopefully 11 players who can play the last pass and for sure he is one of the players who can play this last pass.

“We always search to do the right thing for each game. We have so many different characteristics in our midfield [so] we can change when necessary and put the right midfield in in place to approach the game. 

“It is not just Thiago of course, but Curtis Jones who comes in and takes an important spot in midfield, who gives us risk between the lines, gives us young blood. He is a proper squad player at this moment in time.”

Discussing Jota, who cost Liverpool an initial £41million (€45m/$52m) when joining from Wolves last weekend, Lijnders allayed fears the Portugal international would find it difficult to get game-time given the presence of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino as Jurgen Klopp’s established forward line.

“You saw our schedule, right? He will win matches!” he said. “He is a player on the level of the front three technically, a pressing monster. 

“The adaptation will hopefully be quite quick, and with good players it is normally quite quick. He has to learn our game and the way we want to do things but when we see him play in the national team for Portugal we see them play 4-3-3, there are a lot of similarities between these two teams. He will play. He has been bought to create solutions for us.”