Liverpool’s latest young right-back is achieving things Trent Alexander-Arnold took years to accomplish, and he’s drawn level with Mohamed Salah for good measure.
The Liverpool fanbase has taken Conor Bradley to its heart in double-quick time. With the performances the young right-back is delivering, it’s little wonder he’s the Kop’s new hero.
The 20-year-old was voted the player of the match in the club’s official poll for the Reds’ 4-1 win over Chelsea, just as he was in the previous game against Norwich City. Only Mohamed Salah, as the saying goes, has also won the award in consecutive matches this season.
As impressive as that is, the more obvious point of comparison for Bradley is Trent Alexander-Arnold. He recorded his 300th Liverpool appearance against Chelsea, becoming the third-youngest player in club history to reach that landmark. Yet his young apprentice from Northern Ireland has matched some of his other achievements having played just 14 games for the Reds.
Against Chelsea, Bradley scored a goal and assisted Diogo Jota and Dominik Szoboszlai. Alexander-Arnold once set up three goals in a match – during a 5-0 victory against Watford in 2019 – but in only one of his 300 games did he assist two and get on the score sheet himself. It occurred in the match many would pick as the finest of his career, the 4-0 victory at Leicester shortly after Liverpool had become champions of the world for the first time. The goals the right-backs scored in the respective matches were even broadly similar, with them charging into the right of the box and firing across to the left.
Both of Alexander-Arnold’s assists at the King Power Stadium were for Roberto Firmino. There are no bonus points for variety, of course, but Bradley is making a habit of setting up a whole host of teammates.
He became only the third Liverpool player to create three Opta-defined big chances in a match this season when he did so against the Canaries on Sunday. Alexander-Arnold (at Sheffield United) and Salah (against Newcastle) provided the other instances, but Bradley’s trio was arguably more impressive, and not just because he is the only one of the three to see two of them converted.
Two of the high-value opportunities Alexander-Arnold crafted at Sheffield United came from corners. Set pieces are practiced and drilled through repetition, making it easier to use them effectively. While Salah’s trio against the Magpies were all in open play, two were for Darwin Núñez, with their relationship for chance creation already well established.
