Former Arsenal star Paul Merson has labelled Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai a “top-draw player” for his performances over the course of this season.

The Hungarian international has begun to produce more in the final third with goals and assists in recent weeks, but Merson says that Szoboszlai is equally important to the team in terms of his work off the ball:

“I thought he was outstanding last season, probably one of the best signings of the season. I thought he started well, probably caught up with him towards the end of the season.”

“This season, this lad, he works hard. He runs off the ball. It’s an art, running off the ball. People want to work when they’ve got the ball at their feet; people really don’t want to work when they haven’t got the ball at their feet.”

Merson emphasised that Szoboszlai’s work rate out of possession has helped Mo Salah and others to find gaps in opposition defences:

“He will make runs for the team and look at the distances he covers, but he’s not one of them who just runs anywhere. He’s very precise in when he makes his runs, and he gets himself into good positions. I think he’s a top player, I really do.”

“But some people run around, and they don’t really affect the game. He affects the game, whether it be a run taking players away for [Mohamed] Salah to get the ball… he’s a top, top player, top-draw player.”

Szoboszlai’s season in numbers

The 24-year-old has now scored 7 goals and provided 6 assists in 36 appearances for the Reds this campaign. It means he has already surpassed the 11-goal contributions he managed during his first year at Anfield.

As Merson points out, though, Szoboszlai is also outstanding when asked to do the dirty work. Across the top 5 European leagues over the past 12 months, he is in the top 6% of attacking midfielders for blocks and the top 22% for interceptions.

Slot has improved so many players in Liverpool’s first-team

Szoboszlai is by no means the only member of the squad who has gone to another level since the arrival of Arne Slot last summer.

The likes of Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo have seen drastic improvements in their performance levels too. It is one of the key reasons why the Reds find themselves 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League table.

Find out who is in Liverpool’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here