Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has admitted to being given a ‘shock to the system’, but what is it that’s left the Ox all shook up?
The Reds midfielder is back on the pitch after a horror injury, but has told the Daily Mail that all hasn’t been 100% well during preseason.
Oxlade-Chamberlain is giving himself the best possible chance of being selected for the Community Shield on Sunday or the Premier League opener against Norwich on Friday, although Jurgen Klopp may still decide that the Ox needs more time.
With Sadio Mane not available, as per Sky Sports, there is every chance Oxlade-Chamberlain will be named in the playing squad.
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Preseason is always tough on the legs, but the former Arsenal man has found this summer particularly difficult. After struggling to match his pre-injury levels, Oxlade-Chamberlain has called the realisation that he still has some work to do ‘a shock to the system’.
It’s natural that he wants to return to the high standards the midfielder was settling before that horrible ACL blow, but that will take some time to get used to the rhythm of things and before he starts to fire on all cylinders.
The Ox faces a battle with his own head now. ‘There is a place where I think I should be,’ the Daily Mail reported that he said, ‘but there is a reality of the process that I am going through,’ continued the England international.
And the disparity between those two realities – where the Liverpool lad thinks he should be and where he actually is and the realisation that comes with that, will be tough over the next few weeks.
But we all know how good he is, how good he can be and what an important player Oxlade-Chamberlain will be for the team.
GOOOOAAALLLLSSS 😍⚽️
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 2, 2019
Competitive action returns on Sunday, so let's take a look back at our top 🔟 strikes from last season 🔥 pic.twitter.com/9twgeedNPF
We all need patience, and to just enjoy seeing him back on the field after such a horrific blow and nearly a whole campaign out of action.