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Gary Neville has told his Sky Sports podcast that he felt Thiago impressed during his first Anfield appearance for the Reds during Sunday’s 0-0 draw with Manchester United – having previously played five times away from home.
Thiago, 29, had faced Chelsea, Everton, Newcastle and Southampton in the Premier League but all four matches were away from home. He also played a part in the 4-1 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup at Villa Park.
Sunday’s clash against Liverpool’s bitter rivals was his first outing in a Liverpool shirt at Anfield. The midfielder did well, probably coming closest to Liverpool scoring with a well-struck effort from 20 yards which David De Gea saved.
Manchester United icon Neville was asked about Liverpool midfielder Thiago and he responded by stating the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich maestro did well initially – but his influence deteriorated throughout.
“He’s a hell of a player and we’ve seen him for many years,” Neville said. “For the first 15-20 minutes, I was thinking why didn’t Bruno stand on him. He was running the game, dribbling past people.
TBR’s view – Thiago’s influence will only grow
It must be remembered that it was only Thiago’s sixth appearance for Liverpool, with the Spaniard lacking in any real kind of momentum having struggled with injury and then returning a positive test this season.
The holding midfielder is only going to get better the more he plays for Liverpool. Come the end of the season, Thiago will be hoping he is back on top of his game going into Euro 2021 with his country.
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