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EPL From left: Dominik Szoboszlai, Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley Photos: Getty Images; design: Kelsea Petersen Right-back felt like something Arne Slot did not need to worry about. After Trent Alexander-Arnold announced his decision to leave at the end of his contract last season, Liverpool moved swiftly to bring in Jeremie Frimpong to compete with Conor Bradley. Signing Frimpong offered the first hint that Liverpool’s in-possession approach was being tweaked. Alexander-Arnold’s skill set is irreplaceable and the former Bayer Leverkusen defender operates very differently in the role. Advertisement Stylistically, Frimpong, 24, is much closer to Bradley, 22. Both are ball-carriers and like to overlap and underlap in their off-ball runs. Alexander-Arnold was more of a progressive passer and creative force. “Jeremie and Conor Bradley are similar types, although Jeremie is maybe better in the one-v-ones than Conor, ” Slot told reporters before the opening game of the season, a 4-2 win against Bournemouth. “Jeremie and Conor can both contribute to Mohamed Salah’s output because if you play against these two, you know you have to be aware of them as well. “Last season, the opposition could give a little bit more help because Trent was a little bit more behind the ball. Trent brought the best out of Mo but the same thing is going to happen with Conor and Jeremie. ” For all that understandable positivity, right-back has become a barometer for Liverpool’s unsettled start to the season. Neither Frimpong nor Bradley has established themselves as the first choice, with midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai also being shifted to right-back. In all competitions, including the Community Shield, Szoboszlai and Frimpong have started four times, and Bradley three. Injuries are the chief cause of this inconsistency. Frimpong and Bradley were sidelined within one game of the Premier League campaign (Bradley had picked up an injury during pre-season), which meant Slot had to redeploy Szoboszlai. The Hungary international put in man-of-the-match performances against Newcastle United and Arsenal and has been the best performer in the role this season. Liverpool may be transitioning their style of play, but Szoboszlai has offered Alexander-Arnold-like qualities from right-back. He is comfortable ‘inverting’ into midfield and has a more expansive passing range than Bradley and Frimpong, as illustrated in these examples against Arsenal… … and Chelsea. He has still created chances from right-back, too, providing the cross that led to Cody Gakpo’s equaliser against Chelsea. A deeper cross against Crystal Palace should have resulted in Florian Wirtz’s first Liverpool goal. Out of possession, Szoboszlai’s athleticism and physicality have helped him cope, but his defensive instincts have been exposed at times. Advertisement Against Galatasaray, he conceded a soft penalty when Baris Yilmaz checked back inside him, having already allowed the forward a big chance early on when he ran behind on his blind side. Against Chelsea, similarly, he did not spot Enzo Fernandez’s run when he headed against the post late on. Liverpool and Szoboszlai are better when he is in midfield, and that is where he should play moving forward. Neither Bradley nor Frimpong’s injury absences at the start of the campaign were extensive, but Slot has needed to manage them to build rhythm and avoid further problems. “They’ve come back from their injuries but we don’t believe it’s possible if you’ve been out for three or four weeks with an injury that you can play three games in a week, ” Slot told reporters when asked about the full-backs this month. “Because you’re not prepared for that. That’s why we had to adjust in that position. ” For so long, Liverpool’s right-hand side has been their strength but with Salah out of form, that has not been the case this season. The rotating cast behind Salah cannot be helping him: while he has started 19 times with Bradley, it is still a partnership in its infancy compared to the telepathic understanding shared with Alexander-Arnold. That said, they do complement each other, with Bradley’s dangerous underlapping runs… … while the Northern Ireland international also offers a goalscoring threat. One of the ways Bradley has endeared himself to supporters is his natural tenacity when defending — but that aggression does get him into trouble. In eight appearances this season, Bradley has picked up five yellow cards. The latest was in the 2-1 defeat at Chelsea, where he was substituted at half-time after being booked in the 34th minute… … and then fouled Alejandro Garnacho just before the interval. Bradley’s discipline issues have seeped into his international appearances, too. He picked up a cheap yellow card for Northern Ireland in their 2-0 victory against Slovakia during a man-of-the-match performance, ruling him out of the 1-0 defeat against Germany. Advertisement Four of Bradley’s bookings came when appearing as a substitute, suggesting an eagerness to make an impact. All were awarded for slightly late challenges. He is getting too tight, too quickly, and too often. Frimpong has started three games since returning from injury, two of which came at right-back. He played well against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, but his performance in the 2-1 Carabao Cup win against Southampton was less impressive. His selection on the right wing against Galatasaray was surprising, not only because Mohamed Salah was left out, but because Szoboszlai was picked behind him, too. Slot‘s explanation was Liverpool had planned for Yilmaz to drift inside from the left, allowing Szoboszlai to be more central and Frimpong to patrol the right. It came days after Frimpong lost Eddie Nketiah at the back post when the Palace forward scored a last-minute winner. When he was an unused substitute against Chelsea, with Slot opting to move Szoboszlai to right-back, questions were raised about the head coach’s trust and Frimpong’s suitability. Frimpong is adjusting to a new league, not to mention a new role. At Leverkusen, he was used as a right wing-back, which came with different responsibilities. He was rarely involved in the initial build-up phase — that has changed at Liverpool. In recent matches, they have found building out from the back in the 4-2 shape difficult. Opponents are pressing and setting up with more confidence, restricting Liverpool’s options in possession, as below at Palace… … and Chelsea, with Liverpool looking less assured and cohesive in possession. Liverpool no longer have Alexander-Arnold releasing pressure by playing a pass down the line or hitting a diagonal switch. He averaged 5. 1 progressive passes per 90 minutes last season in the Premier League. Bradley averaged 1. 2 and Frimpong 0. 9. Advertisement We have seen different approaches from Liverpool in their attempts to solve the problem, whether that be dropping Ryan Gravenberch between the centre-backs or rotating the deepest midfielder showing for the ball. It remains a work in progress. If Liverpool are struggling to build out from the back consistently, then they can’t gain the territory required to allow Bradley or Frimpong to play on the front foot. They are ball carriers, averaging 7. 4 and 7. 1 progressive carries per 90 in their respective leagues — a significant increase on Alexander-Arnold’s 3. 1. It has prevented more attacking sequences where they can link with Salah. Here is Bradley against Burnley… … and Frimpong against Palace. There have also been difficulties for the front three in holding the ball up or retaining possession. In this example against Atletico Madrid, Frimpong did everything right by making the passing angle and finding Alexander Isak, but Salah’s poor pass from his teammate’s layoff saw Liverpool concede possession. None of this is helping the form of centre-back Ibrahima Konate. His jitters, in turn, won’t be providing any confidence to whoever is selected outside of him. Stability will be pivotal and Slot’s choice is whether to go with Bradley, who is more experienced in the system, or persevere with Frimpong as he is doing with Milos Kerkez on the opposite side. It is not the only issue troubling Slot as he confronts Sunday’s home match against Manchester United — another team, like Palace, who play a 3-4-3 — but if he solves it, other elements of his team may start to click. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Andrew Jones is a Staff Writer for The Athletic covering Burnley FC and Liverpool FC. Having graduated from the University of Central Lancashire with a First Class Honours Degree in Sports Journalism, Andrew has had written work published for the Liverpool Echo, Chelsea FC and Preston North End. Follow Andy on Twitter @adjones_journo