Liverpool icon Graeme Souness has named his favorite player in the Premier League but he has overlooked the two obvious candidates from a Reds perspective in Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
"It is easy to pinpoint Salah for his creativity and goals, to hail Luis Diaz for his pace and energy or to laud Van Dijk for his elegance and composure," Souness wrote for the Daily Mail. "But the one Liverpool player that I’d pick, even above those this year, would be Alexis Mac Allister."
Signed from Brighton as part of the Liverpool midfield rebuild in 2023, the South American has proven to be a huge hit on Merseyside. He has played a vital role this season and was arguably the best player in the team in Jurgen Klopp's final campaign in charge.
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Under Arne Slot, Mac Allister has shown no signs of slowing down. He is well-suited to the number eight role that he plays now, usually alongside Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai.
"I’ve long believed that the best footballers come from Argentina," Souness continued. "Maybe it’s something to do with the migration of so many Italians there, combined with the natural Latin flair and aggression, but whatever the ingredients, they make for excellent footballers, and this guy is my current favorite.
"It’s no wonder his teammates used to rib him about being Jurgen Klopp’s ‘son’. It would be difficult for any manager not to favor him. He looks like he has the best of attitudes. Even when Bruno Guimaraes left one on him at Anfield the other night, his unruffled reaction says everything about him.
"I bet the manager never has to speak to him. He is brave, full of endeavor, and has a fantastic appetite for doing the hard yards. I like him best when he is pushing further forward making mischief. I’m an enormous fan. The £35m ($44m) plus add-ons that Liverpool paid Brighton for him looks like the bargain of recent times.
"Whatever the bonuses, just sign the cheque now because he’s worth every penny. My only disappointment is that he looks Scottish and has a wonderful Scottish name, but he doesn’t wear a Scotland jersey. Saying that, it must have been a hard choice: Scotland or Argentina..."
Liverpool.com says: There is no wrong answer when it comes to your favorite Liverpool player. Mac Allister, Salah and Van Dijk have all been exceptional this season. So too have the likes of Gravenberch, Szoboszlai and Luis Diaz. All across the pitch, the Reds have leading players in their positions.
