LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - AUGUST 12: Naby Keita of Liverpool in action during the Premier League match between Liverpool and West Ham United at Anfield on August 12, 2018 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Getty Images)

Newcomer Naby Keita had an outstanding debut for the Reds against West Ham last weekend, playing a key role in the midfield as Liverpool won their opening match 4-0.

Naby Keita was one of several midfielders who Liverpool signed before this season and looks to be one of the most impactful ones after a stellar performance last weekend in his first EPL match. The former RB Leipzig man played the full 90 minutes on the left wing for Jurgen Klopp’s side, creating numerous opportunities and feeding his strikers up top.

Analyzing his performance against West Ham

Keita has an 88.2 pass percentage against the Hammers, which is outstanding. He was very precise with his passes and seldom made any careless mistakes. He also completed a total of 68 passes in the match, with most of them being short balls rather than long balls that usually end up being intercepted by the opposition. One thing I noticed he did very well was give and go’s. There were several times throughout the match where he passed the ball to a teammate and moved into space to receive the ball back, rather than passing the ball then admiring the play.

An example of his stellar play in this match was the first goal. Keita had the ball on the counter-attack coming down the middle of the pitch. about ten yards outside the box, he saw Andy Robertson making a run on the left flank.

Instead of giving him the ball immediately at his feet, Keita led Robertson so he could run on to the ball and make a perfect cross into the box. That’s exactly what he did, and Robertson found Mo Salah in the 6-yard box for an easy tap-in. It’s little things like this which can make such a difference in a game. This play was one of many where Keita showed his wealth of soccer IQ and vision.

Keita is also a presence in the middle

Now Liverpool plays a 4-3-3 formation, but when they’re on the attack, both Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold move up on the left and right flanks respectively. Wiljandum and Milner, the two other midfielders along with Keita, play more of a defensive midfield in this situation.

Since you have your left and right backs surging up the wings (Robertson and Alexander-Arnold), Keita has the opportunity to move into space in the middle, which he did numerous times against West Ham.

Even though he is playing on the flank, his role changes based on how Liverpool set up on the attack. Adding another premier attacker like Keita is going to cause serious problems for opponents because the Reds already have three outstanding strikers in Salah, Mane, and Firmino. With opposing back lines now having to focus on containing Keita as well will open up more space for the front three.

The Guinean international is a great passer, but he also showed the ability to dribble past two or three defenders at a time. There was one run where he went through three West Ham players on his own which was extremely impressive. He’s always moving. Keita never gets the ball then stops the momentum of play and tries to use all this fancy footwork. He may use it at times, but at least he is moving with the ball while doing it.

Coming over to Liverpool from RB Leipzig was a fairly easy transition for Keita because they play very similar football with Leipzig. They play a fast-paced game that focuses on the attack just like Liverpool does. That has definitely helped the 23-year old become familiar with Klopp’s style of play relatively quickly.

Keita is the full package who possesses the offensive and defensive attributes that are necessary to succeed in the premier league. He is great at retreating into the defensive end and intercepting balls and winning tackles when he needs to as well.

His stellar performance against West Ham is just a glimpse into the brilliance that Naby Keita can bring to this Liverpool squad as they will look to dethrone Manchester City this year.