This incredible stat about Fabinho will get you hyped

Liverpool midfielder Fabinho made his first European start for the club last night and was sensational. Here is one stat that will get you hyped.

We’ve been waiting for this. Liverpool signed Fabinho for £40 million way back in June – just days after the Champions League final. Yet it wasn’t until yesterday that we got to seem make a start in a meaningful match. He did not disappoint.

The Reds ran out as 4-0 winners against Red Star Belgrade and the Brazilian drew heaps of praise from fans and critics for his commanding display in the middle of the park.He was active in every phase of play; racking up defensive stats and driving the team forward into attack.

There are a number of stats from yesterday’s game but was stands above the rest as truly impressive and hugely exciting for the rest of the season.

Fabinho made 24 duels in his 90 minutes, winning 18 of them. That is a winning percentage of 75% which is excellent but the sheer volume is incredible.

You can see from the stats above how exceptional his contributions last night were compared to his colleagues performances in the Premier League this season.

Those who paid attention to his playing at Monaco will not be surprised. He was a league leader in duels, racking up tackles and headers at an astonishing rate. While that was against Ligue 1 opposition – and Red Star are not the best team in Europe – it is encouraging nonetheless.

The Reds have not had a specialist tackler in the midfield since Lucas Leiva left at the end of the 2016/17 season. If he can be a dependable destructive force in the middle it will release his midfield colleagues to better support the attack and high press.

Liverpool take on Cardiff this weekend and there will be many expecting Fabinho to keep his place in the side as the Reds face the newly promoted side at Anfield.