Just why was Liverpool defender Joe Gomez criticized by manager Jurgen Klopp for the size of his muscles?
First of all, if your manager tells you to work on something then you do it. He picks the team and he decided your football destiny, it just makes sense.
But as a defender, wouldn’t it make sense to be strong and avoid being knocked off the ball by robust forwards? Well maybe for hulking center backs, but as the pace of the game has increased the speed, not strength, of those playing at the back has become more important.
Gomez has found this out the hard way as he fell on the wrong end of his gaffer during his rehab from a horrible knee injury.
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“He had a lot of muscle and you only need muscles like that if you’re only going to the beach or whatever,” the Liverpool club website reported that Klopp said.
And mirror muscles are not what Champions League hopeful, first team footballers are looking for. Especially not full-backs.
But there was a good reason for that bulk, as Gomez explained on the club site: “When you’re in rehab, you want to do everything you can. All you can do really is try to strengthen your body.
“I wanted to make myself as strong as possible in order to avoid any future injuries. I didn’t want to waste my time sulking and feeling sorry for myself.”
However, this extra muscle creates a problem. It means a player isn’t as quick as he needs to be and isn’t as mobile as football demands, especially for a full-back who has to bomb up and down the pitch.
“There is only so much power and strength you need. The main thing is to be mobile, especially you’re playing at full-back. It’s more important to be able to get up and down,” Gomez explained to the club media.
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But promisingly, he took that criticism on board, worked on it and has come back strong. If the former Charlton man’s early season performances are anything to go by, he’s going to reap the benefits of slimming down.