Numbers behind Conor Bradley's evolution as a fullback and what will Liverpool miss

Bradley had a mixed campaign but was starting to play well before the nasty knee injury

Written on 16/01/2026

When Conor Bradley went down in the dying moments of the game against Arsenal last week, it was clear that he was not trying to waste time but was genuinely in pain. He was stretchered off that night, and we have since learned that he has undergone knee surgery, which will keep him out of action for the rest of the season, if not longer.

It was a shame, as the Northern Ireland international had started all three league games in the New Year after recovering from another muscle injury that had kept him out of action during the last week of November and the first week of December.

Bradley turned 22 last summer, so the best years are still ahead of him. However, he has already faced plenty of injury issues, and this knee injury will set him back further. While muscle injuries can be irritating, they are not as complicated as a knee injury. Let’s hope he bulks up and returns strong by the end of this calendar year.

Below is a table of the injuries he has suffered since the start of the 2023/24 season, along with the time he has spent out as a result.

The 22-year-old suffered a stress fracture that kept him out for the first four months of the 2023/24 season, before an ankle injury ruled him out for the latter part of that campaign. Last season, he had two spells sidelined due to muscle injuries, keeping him out of more than eight games for club and country.

After a disrupted pre-season caused by a hamstring injury that kept him out of the first two league games of this season, Bradley experienced another muscle issue for two weeks in late November. Now, this knee injury is set to keep him out for a prolonged period.

Since he began playing regular football in January 2024, 24 months ago, he has faced plenty of setbacks. The hope is that these challenges make him stronger rather than holding him back.

What has this resulted in? Limited playing time, as shown in the table below (and of course Trent Alexander-Arnold was ahead in the pecking order till the 24/25 season):

We are only in January 2026, and he had already made 13 starts in all competitions this season, close to the number he managed in each of the previous two campaigns. A mixed bag of performances meant that he did not complete as many of the games he started this time, but that seemed part of the development of a young full-back.

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Let’s move on from that and look at the Northern Irishman’s numbers and how his numbers and/or performances have evolved from starting out under Jürgen Klopp in 2023/24 to now playing under Arne Slot since the start of last season. Starting with passing and chance-creation numbers:

xAG: A metric that quantifies the quality of a pass that leads to a shot, estimating the likelihood that the pass will become a goal assist based on the expected goals (xG) of the resulting shot.

Shot-Creating Action: Measures how often a player is involved in sequences that result in shots, regardless of shot quality.

Expected assisted goal (xAG) returns have dropped this season, but passes into the final third have increased, highlighting the role Bradley has been playing this season. He has been more involved in build-up play rather than finishing moves with a pre-assist or shot-creating action (sequences ending up with shots), which explains the drop-off in the latter.

This transition has not come naturally to him so far, as he is a different type of full-back who prefers to stay ahead of the ball in the build-up and influence play more often with crosses and passes into the opposition box.

Next up, possession and touches per zone numbers.

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