The One Signing That Could Boost Liverpool’s Season In The Bid To Finish Top 4

1. Excellent defensive work

Inler is a solid defensive midfielder who has been a crucial part of the transformation that has taken place at Napoli in the recent seasons. He averages 4.8 tackles per game so far this season in 19 league appearances, with a success rate of 54%. Although the number was lower last season, he averaged 2.5 tackles per game, the success rate of 71% was really impressive and he was playing a more advanced role. Even though Lucas averages 6.3 tackles per game, his accuracy is much lower at 43%.

Inler averages just over 4 defensive actions per game, and has made 38 interceptions, 34 clearances and 5 blocks so far this season. Last season, he averaged 3.1 defensive actions per game with 36 interceptions, 50 clearances and 10 blocks, showing that his reading of the game has improved in the last year or so. His numbers speak for themselves, and at Liverpool, he would fit in perfectly in a deep-lying role at the heart of the Reds midfield, be it with Lucas or instead of him. (All the stats via Squawka)

2. Ability to create and score goals

The one thing Liverpool’s midfield has been lacking has been goals. Apart from Steven Gerrard (9 last season, 5 so far this season), most of Liverpool’s midfielders have failed to get on the score sheet on a regular basis, and that is not even considering the fact that Gerrard is Liverpool’s first choice penalty taker.

What makes Inler so dangerous is that he does not need to get into the penalty box in order to score- all 7 of his league goals in the last couple of seasons have been long range strikes from outside the box. He is comfortable shooting with both feet, and that will add a different kind of threat to Liverpool’s play in and around the opposition’s penalty box. He also creates chances from his deeper role, having created 13 chances including 1 assist this season and 28 chances including 2 assists, and has a decent passing accuracy of 87% this season and 85% last season.

3. An experienced head

The signings that Liverpool have been looking to do have been youngsters below the age of 23, high-potential players with good resale value. However, that has meant that there is a general lack of experience in the side apart from a handful of players. Inler would be a step towards addressing that problem. He has shown that he has the ability to lead a transformation as he has proved with Napoli, and Liverpool will benefit from his experience.

He is a leader by example who makes tackles and works hard in order to drive his team forwards. The 29 year old is the captain of the Swiss national team and is one of the most highly rated players in the Serie A in his role. With Steven Gerrard approaching the twilight of his career, Inler could be the man to guide Liverpool’s midfield in the short term before they find a successor, and he still has at least 3-4 years of top level football left in him before he starts to decline. Napoli won’t sell him easily, but if Liverpool manage to sign him, it will solve a lot of their midfield woes.