Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will get his first start for Liverpool in the Carabao Cup... with boss Jurgen Klopp predicting it can be a first step to greatness.
The 24-year-old quit Arsenal because he feared his career had stalled and took a massive pay cut, feeling his new manager could reinvigorate him and take him to the next level.
Despite claims the £35million summer signing had not to fulfilled his potential, Klopp believes he is now at the right age to make vast progress.
“Probably when Alex was 18 or 19 people thought he would be ‘the man’ – as people think a lot of times pretty early – and immediately you put a rucksack on their back,” said Klopp of the weight of expectation on the player at the Emirates.
“That doesn’t make development easy. Hide them for as long as makes sense and then send them out as soon as possible. But he’s at a perfect age and is still able to make big steps.
“I saw already a lot of things in the last game – he looked like a Liverpool player – highest intensity, not fixed on a position, flexible, in the box.
“OK, he didn’t score so I’m sure a lot of people are saying he is a proper Liverpool player – doing everything right but in the end not scoring.”
Oxlade-Chamberlain is likely to start in midfield at Leicester in the Carabao Cup. And Klopp feels the England star perhaps just needed a change of scenery after six years at the Gunners to kick on again.
“We play different to Arsenal, that’s clear,” said the German. “It doesn’t mean we play better or worse, just different.
“Being involved in different football is good for development because it helps you react in different moments.
“Arsenal changed a lot since Arsene is there. I’m sure they didn’t always play with three at the back and with wing backs and so Alex played in different positions when he was there.
“It’s the highest quality if you can play in different positions in the Premier League. That says a lot about you.
“A new start is very often a kind of relief.”