Liverpool currently have a significant number of players in their squad that have hit or gone over the age of 30.
One of those players is club captain Jordan Henderson, who at the age of 32, only has two players older than him in Jurgen Klopp’s squad.
Even though the Englishman still has over two years left on his contract at Anfield, the club may now be considering potential long-term replacements for him or other midfielders in a similar age bracket such as James Milner and Thiago Alcantara.
One figure that the Reds have been linked with recently that we feel could be a suitable long-term heir for Henderson is Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves.
Having made 160 appearances for Wolves in the Premier League, the 25-year-old certainly has enough top-flight experience in him to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Diogo Jota, Sadio Mane and other successful players the Reds have signed from fellow English clubs in recent years.
In terms of the similarities between him and Henderson, this current Premier League campaign has seen the two midfielders rack up a very similar percentage of successful passes, with Neves having a percentage of 83.7% compared to the Liverpool figure’s 82.6%.
Would Ruben Neves be a good signing for Liverpool?
Yes
No
However, from a defensive point of view, the Wolves star has shown how much more proficient he is from a defensive point of view compared to Henderson.
Specifically, he tops the Old Gold’s list for the average of tackles per game (2.6), which is a significant increase on Henderson’s average of 0.9 tackles per game.
Previously praised by journalist Tim Spiers for a “sensational” goal he scored back in 2018, the Portuguese international certainly has the talent to strengthen Klopp’s side and has the time ahead of him to be a long-term figure at Anfield once the likes of Henderson, Milner and Thiago have moved on.