The last few weeks have brought plenty to cherish for Curtis Jones on and off the pitch, with the 23-year-old excelling for Liverpool of late and become a dad for the first time.
The Reds midfielder then enjoyed a dream England debut on Thursday as he scored a stunning goal to round off their 3-0 win away to Greece in the UEFA Nations League, being hailed by Micah Richards for an ‘extraordinary’ and ‘fearless’ performance.
However, not every pundit was as effusive with their praise for our number 17 as the ex-Manchester City defender.
Nicol ‘stuck in the middle’ with Jones
Speaking on ESPN FC, Steve Nicol acknowledged that Jones was superb for England in Athens but has still to be convinced that the Liverpool midfielder can produce that level of performance consistently.
The 62-year-old said: “I absolutely am stuck in the middle with Curtis Jones. I really am.
“Today he was great. His goal stood out and he started things for England at the top of his own penalty box, when he was always available, always made the right pass, made the right decision and started everyone up, but I’m really stuck in the middle with him.
“When he’s at Liverpool, a lot of the time he’s actually picked up an injury, but he’ll get two or three games and there seems to be a drop-off. This season, when he’s played, there hasn’t been any drop-off, so maybe, maybe he’s turned a corner, but I’m really stuck in the middle with him.”
Jones has been superb for Liverpool for several weeks now
Jones has endured no shortage of criticism during his career so far, often being maligned online over his goal output, his decision-making in possession and his injury record.
However, Arne Slot appears to be getting the best out of him by utilising him frequently in an attacking midfield role over the past month, with a man-of-the-match display against Chelsea in October setting the tone for what’s come since.
It wasnt just the Liverpool star’s goal which made him stand out against Greece. As per Sofascore, he won seven duels and four tackles as he backed up his splendid finish with plenty of admirable work off the ball, in addition to completing 65 of his 68 passes (96%) on the night.
We can understand why Nicol is hoping that Jones is finally ready to silence his doubters once and for all, but we feel that the former Reds defender’s verdict that he remains ‘stuck in the middle’ over the 23-year-old is a tad harsh.
The midfielder has been excellent recently, and it hasn’t been for just a couple of games either. He’s found a consistent run of form which suggests that he’ll be one of our most important players over the course of the season.
After all, when you’re keeping £60m man Dominik Szoboszlai out of the starting XI, you must be doing plenty right.
