Jurgen Klopp names one Liverpool player who is 'back to his best' after brilliant season so far

Liverpool boss praised Joe Gomez for his form this season, claiming that the defender was 'back to his best'.

Gomez, 26, is currently the longest-serving squad figure following the departures of senior figures Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Roberto Firmino in the summer having joined the club from Charlton in 2015. He has been a key figure at the back for Liverpool this season playing 29 times and across his 16 starts he has filled in brilliantly in both full-back positions in the absences of Andy Robertson, Kostas Tsimikas and Trent Alexander-Arnold, as well as centre-back when Virgil van Dijk was suspended.

It has been a difficult few years for the defender who has had to battle consistent niggling injuries which saw him fall down the pecking order at centre-back. His best form for the club clearly came in the first-half of the title-winning campaign in the 2019/20 season alongside Virgil van Dijk and he has struggled to get back to that level - until now.

Klopp hailed his form ahead of his side's clash with Norwich in the FA Cup as he claimed that Gomez has rediscovered his top level. “Joey is definitely the winner of the season so far, he's back to his best and that's very good for us and him. We had solutions [to their defensive injuries] and there was no real drop-off, we can deal with a few injuries and so far it has worked out well."

His reliability has been something that has been questioned across the past few years; he missed 39 games in the 2020/21 season and totalled just over 1000 minutes the following year when the club played 63 times in all competitions. In terms of this season, he is just two games away from matching last season's 31 appearances and the fact we are only in January of this season shows how far he has come in that regard - he can be relied on, and then some.

As the quadruple hunt remains on, Gomez will be needed to fill in wherever but Liverpool's reliance on him should recede given that Robertson is back and Tsimikas will also return promptly. A hectic schedule is on the horizon and the whole squad will be needed to achieve success in all competitions.

Liverpool have already made 191 changes to their line-ups this season, which is 56 more than any other side in all competitions, which demonstrates how important the whole squad, and Gomez, is and whatever they achieve this season, he will no doubt be their unsung hero.