I absolutely love these questions.
Forget transfer rumours and tactics for a minute — give a footballer the chance to pick five teammates for a five-a-side game and you can usually learn quite a lot about the players they rate.
Andy Robertson has now revealed his five-a-side team.
And Liverpool supporters are going to love the names he picked.
Alisson. Virgil van Dijk. Thiago. James Maddison. Mohamed Salah.
That is some team.
Robertson was asked by The Overlap to pick his five-a-side side from former and current teammates, and there is an obvious Liverpool theme running through his selections.
Alisson in goal.
Van Dijk at the back.
Thiago in midfield.
Salah providing the attacking threat.
And Maddison completing the team.
Honestly, I wouldn’t fancy playing against that lot.
Alisson in goal? Obviously.
Let’s start with Alisson.
There probably aren’t many easier decisions Robertson could have made.
Even in a five-a-side game, having a goalkeeper who is comfortable with the ball at his feet is incredibly important.
And Alisson isn’t just an outstanding shot-stopper.
He can play.
Liverpool supporters have seen it countless times over the years, whether it has been his passing range, his composure under pressure or those occasional moments when he has decided to turn into an extra outfield player.
If you’re building a five-a-side team, having Alisson behind you is a pretty good place to start.
Van Dijk gives you everything
Then you’ve got Virgil van Dijk.
And this is where Robertson’s team starts to look a little unfair.
Van Dijk has the physicality, the intelligence and the ability to bring the ball out from the back.
In a five-a-side game, where space disappears quickly and players are constantly being dragged into different positions, having someone who can read the game like Van Dijk would be enormous.
Robertson knows that better than most.
The pair spent years together at Liverpool and were part of one of the most successful defensive units in the club’s history.
Robertson’s Liverpool career eventually finished after nine years, with the Scot making 378 appearances and winning multiple major trophies.
And then there’s Thiago…
This is probably my favourite selection.
Thiago in a five-a-side team just makes sense.
Give him a tiny pitch, less space and players constantly moving around him and you can imagine the Spaniard having an absolute field day.
His ability to receive the ball in tight areas, turn away from pressure and pick a pass would make him perfect for this sort of football.
And Robertson knows exactly what he was capable of.
There were times at Liverpool when Thiago could make the most difficult pass look ridiculously simple.
For me, if you’re playing five-a-side and you’ve got Thiago controlling the midfield, you would want to give him the ball as often as possible.
Maddison gets the nod
Then comes the really interesting one.
James Maddison.
Robertson is now at Tottenham alongside Maddison, and he has already been impressed by what the midfielder can do in five-a-side games.
When asked which Spurs player had impressed him most, Robertson simply replied:
“Madders – five-a-side player.”
When asked if Maddison was really that good, Robertson replied:
“Yeah, quality.”
Roy Keane couldn’t resist adding his own little dig, suggesting Maddison’s problem comes in 11-a-side football.
But Robertson’s selection tells us what he sees in Maddison when the pitch gets smaller.
And let’s be honest — Maddison, Thiago and Salah in the same five-a-side team would be ridiculous.
And obviously… Mo Salah
Then we get to the player I think every Liverpool supporter would have expected.
Mohamed Salah.
Robertson and Salah developed an incredible understanding during their time together at Liverpool.
The numbers tell you just how long that partnership lasted: the pair played 257 Premier League games together for Liverpool.
Robertson would bomb forward.
Salah would drift inside.
And somehow they seemed to know exactly where the other one was going to be.
In five-a-side, that understanding could be devastating.
Give Salah even half a yard and you’ve got a problem.
Give him space in a small-sided game and you’re probably already in trouble.
Robertson’s team is seriously good
So let’s put it all together.
Alisson
Van Dijk
Thiago
Maddison
Salah
That’s not a bad five-a-side team at all.
And what I particularly like about Robertson’s choices is that they tell us something about the qualities he values.
Alisson’s ability on the ball.
Van Dijk’s intelligence and physical presence.
Thiago’s technical brilliance.
Maddison’s creativity.
Salah’s ability to produce something out of nothing.
There is an outrageous amount of footballing ability in those five players.
And, as a Liverpool fan, seeing three players who became such huge parts of the club’s modern history in Robertson’s five makes it even better.
Robertson may now be starting a new chapter at Tottenham, but when he’s asked to pick the players he wants beside him in a five-a-side game, he clearly hasn’t forgotten the quality he had around him at Liverpool.
And I’m not going to lie…
I’d absolutely love to watch that five play together.
Thiago pulling the strings, Maddison creating, Salah finishing, Van Dijk bullying everyone and Alisson sweeping up behind them.
Good luck stopping that lot.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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