Emre Can came to Liverpool last season on the back of
promising performances for Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen. Indeed, the Reds
were able to beat out stiff competition from Bayern, who had a buy-back clause
for the German international.
Known for his versatility, Can came to Liverpool
and had a very promising debut season, reveling as a right centre back in Brendan
Rodgers’ 3-4-2-1 formation. Can was able to bring the ball out of defence and instigate
attacks with consummate ease.
However, his downturn in form started with the 4-1 thrashing
against Arsenal last season where Can was forced to play in a highly unfamiliar
role at right back. He struggled immensely, failing to deal with Arsenal’s pace
on the break and was eventually sent off.
But even after he came back, Rodgers continued to play him
in the right back position and teams started to take advantage of it. Can’s
confidence started to dwindle rapidly and by the end of last season, Can looked
a defeated man as he barely tried against Marko Arnautovic in the humiliating
6-1 defeat against Stoke.
