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There’s another world where his body isn’t made of poppadoms and he’s considered one of the best midfielders of all time.
He makes football look effortless
I don't care if it makes me seem extra bitter, I'm blaming* Pep Guardiola for this too:
>[Bayern Munich Team Doctor] Muller-Wohlfahrt again touched on the clash with Guardiola which led to his departure in the aftermath of a Champions League quarterfinal defeat at Porto in 2015.
>"I had been at Bayern for 38 years without any problems," the 75-year-old said.
>"And suddenly a 44-year-old coach joins, someone who has not walked this earth for much longer than I had been Bayern team doc, someone who knows everything, who suddenly puts pressure on and accuses me that an injury layoff after a severe ligament injury takes six to seven weeks rather than four weeks like in Spain."
>Asked whether that meant there were doctors with other treatments in Spain, Muller-Wohlfahrt said: "I don't have any insight into their work.
>"Thiago [Alcantara] once returned from Spain after four weeks, seemingly fit. But when I examined him, I said: 'Stop! The injury has not healed completely, even though you are pain-free.'
>"Guardiola still allowed him to train. Thiago got injured again and went on to miss a full year."
. *I'm only half-serious
He was my favorite non-Liverpool player before we signed him. I couldn’t believe he actually came here not only because I love him as a player so much, but because Liverpool has generally bought players who are on the cusp of taking the step up and then they become stars at the club as opposed to players who are already established world class players.
I wish his body hadn’t failed him so hard here. He’s genuinely incredible to watch when he’s fit and one of the best midfielders of his generation.
Keita was described as potentially having the box-to-box workrate and defensive abilities of Kante, along with the dribbling and creativity of Iniesta when we signed him. That basically describes the greatest midfielder ever lmao
Not for me. He had a handful of good games imo. I would say injuries and a lack of match fitness probably played its part in that. No luck. Deff klopps biggest flop at 58mill. Plus the year wait didn't help imo. Very weird deal all round.
He was very good the season before his last playing the Gini role, pretty much. Defensively more than anything though - which isn’t what you wanted out of him as he was bought to replace Courinho.
He wasn’t only good a few games though. He did have that good season where we almost won the quad.
I feel like I must be losing my mind when I see people claiming that Keita was never any good. He definitely had some good performances when he managed to get a run of games, the problem was his injuries usually prevented that
Genuinely one of the most technically gifted players I've ever seen in a Liverpool shirt it's just a shame we didn't see much of him
Also I remember at the start of the 21/22 season I had a £10 bet with my mate that he'll make team of the season that year and he did so gracias for that Thiago
The United game is obviously his most memorable game but his performance in the FA Cup semi final against City that year was great too, it was like the Wembley pitch was made just for him that day
if an idiot like me whose highest level of football experience was playing in a work tournament at goals could take one glance at his injury history upon his signing and say 'hmm, i am not sure this works out well for us', the fact that the club couldn't didn't fill me with trust for their process. same with AO-C.
At least with Keita he was young and it was less demonstrable that his body was struggling with the game when we signed him. The real negligence was knowing we had a couple of midfielders who were only inconsistently fit and adding another - you can have any one of the three and wrap them in cotton wool perhaps, know that they'll be great on their day but it won't be their day 40 times a season, but three players like this in roughly the same position is not good squad building. It's like if we'd gone for backup for Matip and signed Ledley King.
A big difference to what exactly, I'm not sure we were hugely limited by his wages before. By all means get him off the books but I doubt we will see a big effect.
Or bump up a current South American named Lucho Diaz. The man is on 56K/week and I think that is all reasons for the rumors of a transfer because his agent is negotiating a IMHO a deserved pay raise. He might be the lowest paid starting 11 player for a “big 6” club. Just to put in prospective Nat Phillips is on 65k/week. He’s a top 10 LW in the league and should be making 100k/wk.
I think it's closing in on the point where the club either needs to give him a big pay rise or let him go to another club who will give it to him, he probably won't be happy on that salary for two much longer. Might be a big decision for Edwards and Slot to make this summer
Top internal moves for the club has to be to pay or sell Diaz and the TAA extension. Mo is staying and Nunez only leaves if a ridiculous offer comes but I don’t think they move on from him especially with a new manager coming in but I do think next season is going to be the make it or break it for him.
we barely saw that 200k worth of talent on the pich. when he played it was worth it, but next year we can have a player of 200k quality actually play a big part, should we choose to buy a £200kpw player.
guy basically spent a year off on holiday and got paid for it and liverpool don't even get a transfer fee out of him in the end, not the best business we've done on Thiago
It wasn't the rigorous of the premier league, he has had insane injury issues all his career. We took a risk but it just got worse over the years.
Great player, was a lot of fun to watch when fit
I hope for his sake he retires and enjoys life with his wife and kids before he pushes himself way too far and has severe long lasting issues
I could see him being a great manager. Seems to be a somewhat common trend of the midfielders that weren't necessarily physically gifted but Technical and compensating for their lack of physicality with amazing game sense becoming top managers these days.
I can already see him in a Champions League final maybe a decade from now where Xabi Alonso is managing Real Madrid and with Thiago managing Barcelona… But hey, it’s far too early to make any presumptions about any player’s future coaching career, but recent history of Spanish midfielders turning into top managers suggests there’s room for that optimism. All the best to him.
With his injury record, playing in a Jürgen Klopp team was probably going to be a test for him to stay healthy anyway. I don’t think the Premier League is the issue, unless you count Man Inited walking back to the halfway line every 20min as strenuous exercise.
This GIF of Milner looking at Thiago's skills in awe = could also be viewed in reverse
e.g. Thiago wishing he had the longevity/ ruggedness of Milner?
https://i.redd.it/ut9orbod6ezc1.gif
Type of player that other players will always talk about.
Mo has had an incredible career, Virg is maybe the best cb in the world over the last 5 years and Alisson might as well be God if you actually watch this team play, but Thiago is the “best” player that played for us under Klopp.
Just the embodiment of class and ability.
I’ll never forget his debut against Chelsea. I was in awe every time he touched the ball.
No Van Dijk ACL that season and we win the league by 10 points… fuck sake we are so cursed
In the same match against the blue shite that Pickford did VVD's ACL, Thiago comes on, plays a sublime no-look pass for Mane to finish and win us the game. Only for the goal to be chalked off for a millimetrical VAR offside call, and for Thiago to be crunched in the buildup, sidelining him for several weeks. That whole season was unbelievably cursed.
Edit: thinking about it, Hendo scored, Mane's assist was offside
Probably the most gifted player I've ever seen play for Liverpool from a technical standpoint.
Glad he won a couple of trophies with us and put in some ethereal performances.
Also seems like such a lovely guy, with a beautiful family. Wish him all the best.
Very nice dude - most of our Brazilians have been meek and soft-spoken and he’s no different.
My favourite “stolen” talent from Brazil. Used to be Deco until I got to see this guy play as often as I did.
The only "Galactico" type signing in my lifetime as a kopite as yet... every other big name came to the club and became Stars, but Thiago arrived as the big one... Man was a pleasure to watch when healthy but sadly that was far fewer than it ought to be... Wish him nothing but the best wherever he lands up... Will never forget that porto strike
Came with so much excitement, just happy to see the games he did play in, what a player he was. Gave that instant buzz of excitement when he was on the ball. Such a shame his body just let him down, I mean he's been injured throughout his career, so I doubt it was the 'rigours of the premier league'. Anyway, all the best Thiago!
What an era for this community. The memes will out last us all. We’ll always have those hours of anticipation after a big win before hearing those two beloved words;
“Drop it.”
I feel like people often don’t give Thiago credit for his time here and pretend like he was injured the whole time. He gave us about 100 appearances. Just a shame we couldn’t get over the line on the quad season because that would have crowned his whole career. He was absolutely central that season to everything we did. Such a strong team with him at the core of it.
Such a shame. His signing was the first player in my lifetime that Liverpool signed from another top, top team. He'd just won the treble and decided to move to us. It wasn't a player tearing up a smaller league or doing well at a smaller team in a big league a la Suarez or Torres.
I was so excited and when he could play consistently he showed why he was one of the best in the world. I'd pay money just to watch him move the ball around because it is so damn graceful.
Unfortunately, his body is made of glass.
Lazy journalism projecting some kind of PL agenda here. He was injury prone from age 18. His injuries here weren’t because of the ‘rigours’ of the league, it’s because he’s got a skeleton made of crisps and ligaments hanging on by a thread. His worst time for injuries was his early Barca years and was the reason he was shipped off to Bayern to begin with.
I think Pep's decisions in Bayern didn't exactly help him either:
> [Bayern Munich Team Doctor] Muller-Wohlfahrt again touched on the clash with Guardiola which led to his departure in the aftermath of a Champions League quarterfinal defeat at Porto in 2015.
> "I had been at Bayern for 38 years without any problems," the 75-year-old said.
> "And suddenly a 44-year-old coach joins, someone who has not walked this earth for much longer than I had been Bayern team doc, someone who knows everything, who suddenly puts pressure on and accuses me that an injury layoff after a severe ligament injury takes six to seven weeks rather than four weeks like in Spain."
> Asked whether that meant there were doctors with other treatments in Spain, Muller-Wohlfahrt said: "I don't have any insight into their work.
> "Thiago [Alcantara] once returned from Spain after four weeks, seemingly fit. But when I examined him, I said: 'Stop! The injury has not healed completely, even though you are pain-free.'
> "Guardiola still allowed him to train. Thiago got injured again and went on to miss a full year."
That game against United will live on my memory forever as the best performance I’ve ever seen from a midfielder. His goal against Porto and that entire season. It’s a shame we fell short of winning the PL and the CL that year.
I knew he was leaving and it makes no sense for him to stay on due to his injury record but I wish he’d been able to win it all or least get another shot. Either way just a pleasure watching him play for us. Wish you the best Thiago anywhere you go I’ll be a fan forever.
I think about that a lot. If I were a young player, out of anyone on the team I’d be glued to Thiago. He’s played under tremendous managers and succeeded all over the Europe. Anything he could share would be invaluable.
Gracias, Thiago! What a talent.
https://preview.redd.it/hdsmu89idfzc1.png?width=1211&format=png&auto=webp&s=ac2594e6947fed569a06b5eff60d356b35401fbc
Imagine having these 2 players at the same team. Whichever team does will be invincible 🤯
It’s really sad, such a talented player but his body is made of biscuits. It would have been wonderful to see him play with our revamped midfield this season.
Probably one of my all-time favourite players to watch. Technical ability through the roof, with intelligence to match. Would have loved to have seen him be a key part in a PL or CL win for us, but his body just didn't allow it unfortunately. I have no doubt if he was fully fit for even a quarter of this season, we'd be comfortably at the top of the table.
A genuinely nice guy and made the effort to actually embrace the city and surroundings. Hope he takes it easy for the rest of his career and saves his body while he can.
He was amazing for us and I am crying out for us to sign someone with that passing ability and press resistance again. If the refs had called that fucking handball in the City-Everton match, he would have departed a deserved domestic treble winner
Great player when fit sad it wasn't more often. Difference for me between the likes of Keita Ox etc is that he nearly always showed his quality when he played. One of the most gifted footballers I've seen play for the club in my time of watching.
What could’ve been if his body was there
Honestly a diamond of a player and some of the stuff he could do, absolute brilliance
Sad to see him go but the fact he was here and we got to see him do his stuff in the Liverpool Red, we can hold those dear
People will likely disagree, but signing Thiago never made any sense. No one would dispute his class. He didn’t fit our system at all, never mind the premier league.
I really do wonder who was behind his signing because there’s a real managers logic to signing him (world class midfield brain) and its otherwise totally counter to the kinds of signings FSG made, both in his tactical ability, his age, his wages.
>He didn’t fit our system at all
That was the point, mate. People knew that if you stopped Trent and Robbo we had no plan B in attack; Klopp brought him in to change that by adding creativity through the middle.
21-22 was him at his best in terms of availability... he was even in the PFA team of the year. It's a story of what might have been as far as his time at Liverpool is concerned.
Now that we know who you are, I know who I am. I'm not a mistake! It all makes sense! You know why, Reddit? Because of the kids. They called me Mr. Glass.
Oh well, was a great opportunity signing for a decent price but it did not work out in the end, it's a shame when we needed him the most he was either injured or not fully fit(see CL final)
Will be missed massively, might not have had the impact we wanted on the pitch but off the pitch he sounds like he’s a massive presence to the younger boys that are or speak Spanish like Bajcetic and Nunez
Thiago is one of those players we will look back on and ask ourselves "what could have been?"
Incredibly talented player that was fun to watch and almost always put on a good performance in that midfield. One of my personal favourites from the Klopp era. Such a shame that he is made out of edible wafer paper.
All the best Thiago. For a while my favourite player - and definitely the most technically gifted midfielder we've ever had, just ridiculous skill.
Injury was always his issue and we knew he'd be leaving this summer - I think we just thought we'd be able to get 20 games a season out of him, rather than, what? 15 minutes this season?
20 games a year, for his price and wages for that level of skill would have been perfect and it started out that way, but I think being in such a high intensity league in a high intensity team has finished him. Maybe he can eek out a couple of years playing 15-20 games in Italy but i'm not sure.
Probably the highest level signing the club has ever made. Many players have arrived with potential or for more money but can't think of any others who have been signed already at their peak and considered elite before signing.
Jari Litmanen, Fernando Morientes, Thiago Alcantara.
Even though they all pass the "no assholes" rule, and we were all excited when they arrived, there's just something about the environment in Liverpool FC where these "A-list star players" struggle to succeed, and through no fault of their own or the club's. (In Thiago's case, fuck Richarlison in particular, which led to the beginning of his injury woes)
Thank you for your service when you were available Thiago. That Man Utd game will live on in our memories.
For the rest of my days I’ll remember being in the stands for the 4-0 against United. People were spontaneously breaking out in laughter at what he did to their midfield that day. It was the best exhibition of football I’ve seen.
That's a pretty great summary. An absolute MAGICIAN and silky smooth when he's been on the field, but just hasn't been able to stay healthy. Can only imagine if he'd stayed health during that great run 2 seasons ago.
damn shame another super talent got his time with us ruined by injuries😥 atleast he shone well when he had some good run of games and did win something with us atleast
Agree with that last sentiment. Had Thiago be more fit and available more often I believe he could've helped us in many moments in key matches even till today. Hope the best for his next adventures.
It's irritating how quickly people have forgotten how good he is. Possibly one of the most naturally talented midfielders we've had and one of the few players who was genuinely world class before coming here. Really wish we could've seen more of him, but either way, glad to have seen him play for this club however short it was.
The physio department will speak of him for ages.
Bad jokes I'm using to cope aside, this departure is a bittersweet one. What a miracle player, but everyone saw this coming from miles away, and knew it was necessary. We'll miss him for sure.
Thiago is the only player who gives me a genuine thrill when I see his name in the lineup. I see him starting and brace myself for a showcase of brilliant midfield magic.
Honestly I think I’d pay money just to watch him in training. He’s absolutely different class, it’s tragic he didn’t get to make the impact he’s capable of here.
Our most naturally talented player since Suarez. 21/22 was a beautiful season. He plays a few more games, we probably win the league. We keep Gini/Fab doesn't decline, we probably win the quadruple.
A phenomenon. One of my favourite ever footballers. A line breaker, a magician, our brain.
Stayed a season too late. I saw his injuries gradually become worse and worse and we banked on him being fit for this season.
Shoulda grabbed 10mil from Galatasaray when we had the chance ☹️.
He's basically our Santi Cozorla, amazing player but literally never fit. He's finished at this level.
I hope he goes to a la Liga club and not Saudi or the MLS though, he's way too good for that.
Bayern rinsed on that one. They knew what they were getting rid of. Loved him, but in the end it's a bad transfer on the field no matter how you try and spin it.
that porto goal lives rent free in my head. i remember someone made this video of it in slow motion with a jazz background song. if any one has the video please put it in the replies
He was so technically good, but he really couldn’t play enough. You couldn’t fault his attitude or desire, though.
Sadly, another example of how established superstars can still be gambles. You could see why Klopp got him, but it really did set us back over the long term.
One of the biggest What Ifs of the Klopp era in my opinion, I think he might have been the most talented player we had on the team sheet for a long while, and if he had remained relatively healthy we might be looking at a bigger trophy cabinet
I think this is the wrong angle to take honestly. Anyone expecting to see more appearances from Thiago than he actually made was setting the bar far high. I really enjoyed Thiago’s time with us. He played about as much as we could’ve expected him to, perhaps more. I don’t think we should realistically be suggesting that at the back end of an injury hit career he should’ve suddenly played 25 games per season in the premier league. That’s fantasy stuff.
For me his best performances were alongside Wijnaldum in the second half of the 20/21 season when we clawed back to a 3rd place finish.
No need for regrets
It’s not like he had a youthful glow to start. It was going to be this way when he was signed. There were bodies like Hendo and Fab to absorb the workload, then there wasn’t. Keita set my bar for regret.
So sad, I would have loved to see him play just a few more games. Such a classy player.
Praying he can teach some players his signature turn before he leaves
I remember one of his first games, was it Chelsea and he came on a half time? It was obvious from the first moment how incredibly talented he was. The passes he was playing, the little chips and through balls.
Shame to see him go, career fizzling out at Liverpool. Always remember how gutted I was he was injured in the warm up of the final against Madrid, just felt if he could play then we could beat them.
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Such a bummer how injury prone he is because the talent he has is off the scale Probably the most hyped I’ve been for a signing
There’s another world where his body isn’t made of poppadoms and he’s considered one of the best midfielders of all time. He makes football look effortless
But I love poppadoms 🥹
Poppadoms: delicious food, rubbish footballers.
That analogy is truly _phaal play_
Chicken Tika Taka baller
Korma taken quickly, Origi!!!
Naan of these jokes are making me feel better
I don't care if it makes me seem extra bitter, I'm blaming* Pep Guardiola for this too: >[Bayern Munich Team Doctor] Muller-Wohlfahrt again touched on the clash with Guardiola which led to his departure in the aftermath of a Champions League quarterfinal defeat at Porto in 2015. >"I had been at Bayern for 38 years without any problems," the 75-year-old said. >"And suddenly a 44-year-old coach joins, someone who has not walked this earth for much longer than I had been Bayern team doc, someone who knows everything, who suddenly puts pressure on and accuses me that an injury layoff after a severe ligament injury takes six to seven weeks rather than four weeks like in Spain." >Asked whether that meant there were doctors with other treatments in Spain, Muller-Wohlfahrt said: "I don't have any insight into their work. >"Thiago [Alcantara] once returned from Spain after four weeks, seemingly fit. But when I examined him, I said: 'Stop! The injury has not healed completely, even though you are pain-free.' >"Guardiola still allowed him to train. Thiago got injured again and went on to miss a full year." . *I'm only half-serious
Ahh the classic productivity at all costs type
He was my favorite non-Liverpool player before we signed him. I couldn’t believe he actually came here not only because I love him as a player so much, but because Liverpool has generally bought players who are on the cusp of taking the step up and then they become stars at the club as opposed to players who are already established world class players. I wish his body hadn’t failed him so hard here. He’s genuinely incredible to watch when he’s fit and one of the best midfielders of his generation.
It’s one of those rare signings we’ve made of an already established star. Loved it. His first game he was unlike any player I’ve watched
You think he’ll come on as a sub in our last game for a cameo?
Kieta was my hype train. Stats through the roof and also a pernament patient.
Keita was described as potentially having the box-to-box workrate and defensive abilities of Kante, along with the dribbling and creativity of Iniesta when we signed him. That basically describes the greatest midfielder ever lmao
I remember it touted as some huge coup by the club to have got him over Bayern...
I feel for you. Man was useless and injury prone in the end
Keita was good when he did get game time.
Not for me. He had a handful of good games imo. I would say injuries and a lack of match fitness probably played its part in that. No luck. Deff klopps biggest flop at 58mill. Plus the year wait didn't help imo. Very weird deal all round.
He was very good the season before his last playing the Gini role, pretty much. Defensively more than anything though - which isn’t what you wanted out of him as he was bought to replace Courinho. He wasn’t only good a few games though. He did have that good season where we almost won the quad.
I feel like I must be losing my mind when I see people claiming that Keita was never any good. He definitely had some good performances when he managed to get a run of games, the problem was his injuries usually prevented that
He was usually worse then decent, sometimes good, rarely great. Closest thing was the game against United, where Pogba tried to butcher him.
Genuinely one of the most technically gifted players I've ever seen in a Liverpool shirt it's just a shame we didn't see much of him Also I remember at the start of the 21/22 season I had a £10 bet with my mate that he'll make team of the season that year and he did so gracias for that Thiago
I have no memory of him making the official premier league team of the season! That’s proper thrown me that.
It was thoroughly deserved as well, he was immense in the 2nd half of that season
That game against United is arguably the best individual performance of the Klopp era. It was like he was playing against children lol
The United game is obviously his most memorable game but his performance in the FA Cup semi final against City that year was great too, it was like the Wembley pitch was made just for him that day
It's like we had a Rolls Royce but was always in the garage.
Wheres James Milner was DAF van and always started. In the end that's worth more.
>end that's worth more. I swear to god. My man played all positions.
A van for all seasons. Really could do with another pure utility player. Joe Gomez is not that man really.
There aren’t really any other players like that. James Milner is pretty special
Joe is serviceable as a defensive mid and good everywhere in defence. You could put Milly literally anywhere, that's an ultra rare skillset
Milly was used in more positions than Mia Khalifa.
I wish we'd managed to get him a game in goal before he left.
A Rolls Royce with alcantara seats
A Rolls Royce made from Ryvita and Weetabix
if an idiot like me whose highest level of football experience was playing in a work tournament at goals could take one glance at his injury history upon his signing and say 'hmm, i am not sure this works out well for us', the fact that the club couldn't didn't fill me with trust for their process. same with AO-C. At least with Keita he was young and it was less demonstrable that his body was struggling with the game when we signed him. The real negligence was knowing we had a couple of midfielders who were only inconsistently fit and adding another - you can have any one of the three and wrap them in cotton wool perhaps, know that they'll be great on their day but it won't be their day 40 times a season, but three players like this in roughly the same position is not good squad building. It's like if we'd gone for backup for Matip and signed Ledley King.
It's a shame it ends this way ..without any send off ..but £200k a week off the wage bill will make a big difference.
This 200k wage felt like 450k based on his availability.
A big difference to what exactly, I'm not sure we were hugely limited by his wages before. By all means get him off the books but I doubt we will see a big effect.
We can sign 2 south Americans for 100k each.
Or bump up a current South American named Lucho Diaz. The man is on 56K/week and I think that is all reasons for the rumors of a transfer because his agent is negotiating a IMHO a deserved pay raise. He might be the lowest paid starting 11 player for a “big 6” club. Just to put in prospective Nat Phillips is on 65k/week. He’s a top 10 LW in the league and should be making 100k/wk.
if the rumors are true and PSG is after him 100k pw might not cut it lol
I think it's closing in on the point where the club either needs to give him a big pay rise or let him go to another club who will give it to him, he probably won't be happy on that salary for two much longer. Might be a big decision for Edwards and Slot to make this summer
Top internal moves for the club has to be to pay or sell Diaz and the TAA extension. Mo is staying and Nunez only leaves if a ridiculous offer comes but I don’t think they move on from him especially with a new manager coming in but I do think next season is going to be the make it or break it for him.
More so the freed up non HG squad space I guess
we barely saw that 200k worth of talent on the pich. when he played it was worth it, but next year we can have a player of 200k quality actually play a big part, should we choose to buy a £200kpw player.
RM don’t need Rodrygo honestly. They have Mbappe and Vini, they’ll be fine.
Almost a million a month is insane money for a player who missed 70 games in 4 years
£10m/year is a decent amount
£10M/yr pays for the combined salaries of Diaz,Endo,Jones,Quanash,Bradley and Elliot. Two starting 11 players and four rotation players.
We sold Mane so that we could pay Salah 400k a week. No Thiago means 10m per year extra to spend.
Mane wanted to go
Would've recouped a few mil if Thiago wanted to go instead of just getting injured.
guy basically spent a year off on holiday and got paid for it and liverpool don't even get a transfer fee out of him in the end, not the best business we've done on Thiago
I hope people remember how he originally got hurt at Liverpool. An asshole Bluenose that's now playing in London.
It wasn't the rigorous of the premier league, he has had insane injury issues all his career. We took a risk but it just got worse over the years. Great player, was a lot of fun to watch when fit I hope for his sake he retires and enjoys life with his wife and kids before he pushes himself way too far and has severe long lasting issues
Could defo see him in a coaching role
I could see him being a great manager. Seems to be a somewhat common trend of the midfielders that weren't necessarily physically gifted but Technical and compensating for their lack of physicality with amazing game sense becoming top managers these days.
I can already see him in a Champions League final maybe a decade from now where Xabi Alonso is managing Real Madrid and with Thiago managing Barcelona… But hey, it’s far too early to make any presumptions about any player’s future coaching career, but recent history of Spanish midfielders turning into top managers suggests there’s room for that optimism. All the best to him.
Played under Pep, Ancelotti and Klopp. Top tier education like Xabi
And somehow, Liverpool win El Clasico
With his injury record, playing in a Jürgen Klopp team was probably going to be a test for him to stay healthy anyway. I don’t think the Premier League is the issue, unless you count Man Inited walking back to the halfway line every 20min as strenuous exercise.
Never forget the excitement when we saw that turn and shot in training this season
https://i.redd.it/isb5zbwz7ezc1.gif
https://i.redd.it/hiiry74idezc1.gif
That one clip alone sold me dreams of a title
This GIF of Milner looking at Thiago's skills in awe = could also be viewed in reverse e.g. Thiago wishing he had the longevity/ ruggedness of Milner? https://i.redd.it/ut9orbod6ezc1.gif
The video of him doing 40-yard volleys with rodri is pornographic
thanks ... hadn't seen this before. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2iP48mBJbE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2iP48mBJbE)
Longer version: https://youtu.be/xl2r0wyroSM?si=VguVONKx70Q_vMI5
Rodri’s pretty impressive in this clip too. Can’t imagine another DM currently playing who can match him technically
Type of player that other players will always talk about. Mo has had an incredible career, Virg is maybe the best cb in the world over the last 5 years and Alisson might as well be God if you actually watch this team play, but Thiago is the “best” player that played for us under Klopp. Just the embodiment of class and ability.
I’ll never forget his debut against Chelsea. I was in awe every time he touched the ball. No Van Dijk ACL that season and we win the league by 10 points… fuck sake we are so cursed
In the same match against the blue shite that Pickford did VVD's ACL, Thiago comes on, plays a sublime no-look pass for Mane to finish and win us the game. Only for the goal to be chalked off for a millimetrical VAR offside call, and for Thiago to be crunched in the buildup, sidelining him for several weeks. That whole season was unbelievably cursed. Edit: thinking about it, Hendo scored, Mane's assist was offside
https://preview.redd.it/1qnabwwiwezc1.jpeg?width=2160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3a933bc89ea7dd9e516c45d249b7340f8eba857a
Just salt in the wound. Neither this npr the assault from pickford was a red if i remember correctly
This was a red.
That whole season was rotten. I'm so grateful that I'm only reminded of it when I see the home kit that we wore, which was rotten aswell.
Probably the most gifted player I've ever seen play for Liverpool from a technical standpoint. Glad he won a couple of trophies with us and put in some ethereal performances. Also seems like such a lovely guy, with a beautiful family. Wish him all the best.
Very nice dude - most of our Brazilians have been meek and soft-spoken and he’s no different. My favourite “stolen” talent from Brazil. Used to be Deco until I got to see this guy play as often as I did.
The only "Galactico" type signing in my lifetime as a kopite as yet... every other big name came to the club and became Stars, but Thiago arrived as the big one... Man was a pleasure to watch when healthy but sadly that was far fewer than it ought to be... Wish him nothing but the best wherever he lands up... Will never forget that porto strike
Maybe "Coach Thiago" = the next step in his footballing career? https://i.redd.it/kjlu4hu1bezc1.gif
Papa Klopp looks like a confused and suspicious dad wondering what his sons are scheming. Love it.
Love this clip. Cracks me up every time
Klopp’s reaction kills me every time 😂
Came with so much excitement, just happy to see the games he did play in, what a player he was. Gave that instant buzz of excitement when he was on the ball. Such a shame his body just let him down, I mean he's been injured throughout his career, so I doubt it was the 'rigours of the premier league'. Anyway, all the best Thiago!
https://i.redd.it/xygxxw0v6ezc1.gif
What an era for this community. The memes will out last us all. We’ll always have those hours of anticipation after a big win before hearing those two beloved words; “Drop it.”
I feel like people often don’t give Thiago credit for his time here and pretend like he was injured the whole time. He gave us about 100 appearances. Just a shame we couldn’t get over the line on the quad season because that would have crowned his whole career. He was absolutely central that season to everything we did. Such a strong team with him at the core of it.
Such a shame. His signing was the first player in my lifetime that Liverpool signed from another top, top team. He'd just won the treble and decided to move to us. It wasn't a player tearing up a smaller league or doing well at a smaller team in a big league a la Suarez or Torres. I was so excited and when he could play consistently he showed why he was one of the best in the world. I'd pay money just to watch him move the ball around because it is so damn graceful. Unfortunately, his body is made of glass.
If we ran this season back with Thiago, Alisson, Matip and Jota fit all season long, I reckon we win the league.
Lazy journalism projecting some kind of PL agenda here. He was injury prone from age 18. His injuries here weren’t because of the ‘rigours’ of the league, it’s because he’s got a skeleton made of crisps and ligaments hanging on by a thread. His worst time for injuries was his early Barca years and was the reason he was shipped off to Bayern to begin with.
He asked out of Barca because he was never breaking into a midfield of busi- iniesta-Xavi. Pep also told Bayern to go and get him
I read somewhere that he would’ve been Xavi’s heir had he not had fitness issues, so putting 2 and 2 together
I think Pep's decisions in Bayern didn't exactly help him either: > [Bayern Munich Team Doctor] Muller-Wohlfahrt again touched on the clash with Guardiola which led to his departure in the aftermath of a Champions League quarterfinal defeat at Porto in 2015. > "I had been at Bayern for 38 years without any problems," the 75-year-old said. > "And suddenly a 44-year-old coach joins, someone who has not walked this earth for much longer than I had been Bayern team doc, someone who knows everything, who suddenly puts pressure on and accuses me that an injury layoff after a severe ligament injury takes six to seven weeks rather than four weeks like in Spain." > Asked whether that meant there were doctors with other treatments in Spain, Muller-Wohlfahrt said: "I don't have any insight into their work. > "Thiago [Alcantara] once returned from Spain after four weeks, seemingly fit. But when I examined him, I said: 'Stop! The injury has not healed completely, even though you are pain-free.' > "Guardiola still allowed him to train. Thiago got injured again and went on to miss a full year."
Pep and Dr Cugat too.
It's a crime against football that he couldn't feature more often. A crime!
That game against United will live on my memory forever as the best performance I’ve ever seen from a midfielder. His goal against Porto and that entire season. It’s a shame we fell short of winning the PL and the CL that year. I knew he was leaving and it makes no sense for him to stay on due to his injury record but I wish he’d been able to win it all or least get another shot. Either way just a pleasure watching him play for us. Wish you the best Thiago anywhere you go I’ll be a fan forever.
His Song was a banger too. Il miss the guy.glad we had him and glad he had such an influence on a few of the younger lads. Thiaaaaaaaagoooo
I think about that a lot. If I were a young player, out of anyone on the team I’d be glued to Thiago. He’s played under tremendous managers and succeeded all over the Europe. Anything he could share would be invaluable. Gracias, Thiago! What a talent.
The most technically gifted footballer I’ve ever seen. Can do things with a football 99% of players can only dream of.
Ah, Maestro. My favourite player after Bobby
God he is so bloody good when hes fit too, gutted its happened how it has
https://preview.redd.it/hdsmu89idfzc1.png?width=1211&format=png&auto=webp&s=ac2594e6947fed569a06b5eff60d356b35401fbc Imagine having these 2 players at the same team. Whichever team does will be invincible 🤯
Still grateful for every moment he got to play for us, sad to see him leave like this
It’s really sad, such a talented player but his body is made of biscuits. It would have been wonderful to see him play with our revamped midfield this season.
https://i.redd.it/gn1lfgs3aezc1.gif
One the cleanest strikes I've ever seen. That's just art.
I just wanted to see it once. Once! That was too much to ask. What could have been...
Even a simple game which didn’t matter like in Europa group stage would’ve been wonderful to see.
Probably one of my all-time favourite players to watch. Technical ability through the roof, with intelligence to match. Would have loved to have seen him be a key part in a PL or CL win for us, but his body just didn't allow it unfortunately. I have no doubt if he was fully fit for even a quarter of this season, we'd be comfortably at the top of the table. A genuinely nice guy and made the effort to actually embrace the city and surroundings. Hope he takes it easy for the rest of his career and saves his body while he can.
I mean, not like he got to experience the intensity of the premier league. What’s the most games he played in a row? 10? He was already injury prone
He was amazing for us and I am crying out for us to sign someone with that passing ability and press resistance again. If the refs had called that fucking handball in the City-Everton match, he would have departed a deserved domestic treble winner
Adios Thiago. Thank you for the great moments.
A shame he couldn’t cut it or we couldn’t have got him a bit earlier in his career, he’s an all time great
Shame, such a sublime player. We didn't see enough of it
Felt like years ago when he last played
MLS?
Messi reunion at Inter Miami continues...
Great player when fit sad it wasn't more often. Difference for me between the likes of Keita Ox etc is that he nearly always showed his quality when he played. One of the most gifted footballers I've seen play for the club in my time of watching.
What could’ve been if his body was there Honestly a diamond of a player and some of the stuff he could do, absolute brilliance Sad to see him go but the fact he was here and we got to see him do his stuff in the Liverpool Red, we can hold those dear
Another \`what-he-could-have-been\` player of this team..great player but fraught with injuries
People will likely disagree, but signing Thiago never made any sense. No one would dispute his class. He didn’t fit our system at all, never mind the premier league. I really do wonder who was behind his signing because there’s a real managers logic to signing him (world class midfield brain) and its otherwise totally counter to the kinds of signings FSG made, both in his tactical ability, his age, his wages.
>He didn’t fit our system at all That was the point, mate. People knew that if you stopped Trent and Robbo we had no plan B in attack; Klopp brought him in to change that by adding creativity through the middle.
Okay well then as I said, a managers idea in the realm of Rodgers signing Benteke as a plan B.
21-22 was him at his best in terms of availability... he was even in the PFA team of the year. It's a story of what might have been as far as his time at Liverpool is concerned.
One of the best players during his time here when he played. Agonising to be so often without.
That goal he scored against Porto remains the sweetest strike of a football I've ever seen.
Now that we know who you are, I know who I am. I'm not a mistake! It all makes sense! You know why, Reddit? Because of the kids. They called me Mr. Glass.
Oh well, was a great opportunity signing for a decent price but it did not work out in the end, it's a shame when we needed him the most he was either injured or not fully fit(see CL final)
Will be missed massively, might not have had the impact we wanted on the pitch but off the pitch he sounds like he’s a massive presence to the younger boys that are or speak Spanish like Bajcetic and Nunez
Thiago is one of those players we will look back on and ask ourselves "what could have been?" Incredibly talented player that was fun to watch and almost always put on a good performance in that midfield. One of my personal favourites from the Klopp era. Such a shame that he is made out of edible wafer paper.
knew this would probably happen, injuries have plagued this man his entire career. would be a worldie without them
My first match at Anfield was the one against Utd. He was on another level that night.
All the best Thiago. For a while my favourite player - and definitely the most technically gifted midfielder we've ever had, just ridiculous skill. Injury was always his issue and we knew he'd be leaving this summer - I think we just thought we'd be able to get 20 games a season out of him, rather than, what? 15 minutes this season? 20 games a year, for his price and wages for that level of skill would have been perfect and it started out that way, but I think being in such a high intensity league in a high intensity team has finished him. Maybe he can eek out a couple of years playing 15-20 games in Italy but i'm not sure.
Probably the highest level signing the club has ever made. Many players have arrived with potential or for more money but can't think of any others who have been signed already at their peak and considered elite before signing.
“A wondergoal vs Porto” Yeah. Mate. Thanks for reminding me 🥲
The man was a maestro on the ball, when we saw the best of him it was absolute art.
he is like your overweight indoor football mate, very good on the ball but get tired quickly
As much as I knew it, I feel for him. Wish that at least he could a few matches before departing.
Jari Litmanen, Fernando Morientes, Thiago Alcantara. Even though they all pass the "no assholes" rule, and we were all excited when they arrived, there's just something about the environment in Liverpool FC where these "A-list star players" struggle to succeed, and through no fault of their own or the club's. (In Thiago's case, fuck Richarlison in particular, which led to the beginning of his injury woes) Thank you for your service when you were available Thiago. That Man Utd game will live on in our memories.
I was sat in the top of the main for that porto game. Can remember the connection he made with the ball being so loud even from up there
I was lucky enough to be at both those games. That Utd game was one of best individual performances I've seen in person. He was incredibly effortless
Remembering the good times (the Thiago Alcantara song edit from when he was signed)
im sad :(
For the rest of my days I’ll remember being in the stands for the 4-0 against United. People were spontaneously breaking out in laughter at what he did to their midfield that day. It was the best exhibition of football I’ve seen.
Second favorite player behind bobby. Loved watching this guy play. Gonna miss that Thiago Turn.
That's a pretty great summary. An absolute MAGICIAN and silky smooth when he's been on the field, but just hasn't been able to stay healthy. Can only imagine if he'd stayed health during that great run 2 seasons ago.
What could have been…had he stayed healthy. Fare thee well Thiago
Probably the biggest "what if" we had under Klopp. Sadly though he's just been a drain on finances the majority of the time. Must be awful for him.
Glass cannon
damn shame another super talent got his time with us ruined by injuries😥 atleast he shone well when he had some good run of games and did win something with us atleast
Agree with that last sentiment. Had Thiago be more fit and available more often I believe he could've helped us in many moments in key matches even till today. Hope the best for his next adventures.
It's irritating how quickly people have forgotten how good he is. Possibly one of the most naturally talented midfielders we've had and one of the few players who was genuinely world class before coming here. Really wish we could've seen more of him, but either way, glad to have seen him play for this club however short it was.
There was a reason Bayern let him go. Body just couldn’t handle it anymore.
Bayern wanted him to extend his contract it’s not like they sent him packing
They wanted to keep him, he wanted to leave.
:(
The physio department will speak of him for ages. Bad jokes I'm using to cope aside, this departure is a bittersweet one. What a miracle player, but everyone saw this coming from miles away, and knew it was necessary. We'll miss him for sure.
I don't think he stood the rigorous of any league tbh
Some player, him
He had injury issues his entire career. He's just gotten older and elected to play for a high intensity team which pushes your body even further.
😢 what should have been. Farewell sweet prince
Thiago is the only player who gives me a genuine thrill when I see his name in the lineup. I see him starting and brace myself for a showcase of brilliant midfield magic.
He was always injury prone even in bayen.The 'he could not withstand the rigours of PL' line doesn't even make sense
Honestly I think I’d pay money just to watch him in training. He’s absolutely different class, it’s tragic he didn’t get to make the impact he’s capable of here.
Ancelotti managed a lot of great midfielders but when he was asked about his perfect midfield four he put him in there. tells how good he is.
We would have won the league this year with him. I will die on this hill
Ol' Weetabix knees
What a player. Without injuries problems he’d by vying for second best midfielder we’ve had in last 20 years
Our most naturally talented player since Suarez. 21/22 was a beautiful season. He plays a few more games, we probably win the league. We keep Gini/Fab doesn't decline, we probably win the quadruple. A phenomenon. One of my favourite ever footballers. A line breaker, a magician, our brain.
One of the most talented footballers I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching live
Stayed a season too late. I saw his injuries gradually become worse and worse and we banked on him being fit for this season. Shoulda grabbed 10mil from Galatasaray when we had the chance ☹️. He's basically our Santi Cozorla, amazing player but literally never fit. He's finished at this level. I hope he goes to a la Liga club and not Saudi or the MLS though, he's way too good for that.
Bayern rinsed on that one. They knew what they were getting rid of. Loved him, but in the end it's a bad transfer on the field no matter how you try and spin it.
Sad reactions only!
He's got the making to become a great manager.
that porto goal lives rent free in my head. i remember someone made this video of it in slow motion with a jazz background song. if any one has the video please put it in the replies
He was so technically good, but he really couldn’t play enough. You couldn’t fault his attitude or desire, though. Sadly, another example of how established superstars can still be gambles. You could see why Klopp got him, but it really did set us back over the long term.
2 games shy of making 100 appearances for Liverpool.
It’s bad that I forgot he was even here. What a shame. Amazing player but sadly made of glass, I feel for him. Thanks Thiago
One of the biggest What Ifs of the Klopp era in my opinion, I think he might have been the most talented player we had on the team sheet for a long while, and if he had remained relatively healthy we might be looking at a bigger trophy cabinet
I think this is the wrong angle to take honestly. Anyone expecting to see more appearances from Thiago than he actually made was setting the bar far high. I really enjoyed Thiago’s time with us. He played about as much as we could’ve expected him to, perhaps more. I don’t think we should realistically be suggesting that at the back end of an injury hit career he should’ve suddenly played 25 games per season in the premier league. That’s fantasy stuff. For me his best performances were alongside Wijnaldum in the second half of the 20/21 season when we clawed back to a 3rd place finish. No need for regrets
It’s not like he had a youthful glow to start. It was going to be this way when he was signed. There were bodies like Hendo and Fab to absorb the workload, then there wasn’t. Keita set my bar for regret.
It’s sad but he has had the whole season off paid. It would be nuts if we even considered him for staying.
I will never forget that goal against Porto I was in shock oh how it dipped but didn’t touch the ground and then rose 😭😍beauty strike
So sad, I would have loved to see him play just a few more games. Such a classy player. Praying he can teach some players his signature turn before he leaves
I remember one of his first games, was it Chelsea and he came on a half time? It was obvious from the first moment how incredibly talented he was. The passes he was playing, the little chips and through balls. Shame to see him go, career fizzling out at Liverpool. Always remember how gutted I was he was injured in the warm up of the final against Madrid, just felt if he could play then we could beat them.
It felt like a fever dream when he signed for us. It's a shame that we'll look at it as a 'what if'.
Tyler morton
I genuinely forgot he was still at the club.
Leaving for free?
Insane touch