What Does a Fully Fit Arthur Melo Bring to Liverpool?

When Arthur Melo was signed on loan from Juventus on the deadline day of the summer transfer window, the general consensus was that this was a panic move by Liverpool. 

It was later confirmed that the Reds did go after Aurélien Tchouaméni, but Real Madrid beat them to it. And when the time was running out, a frankly weird move to sign an out-of-sorts midfielder was made.

Since his move to Juventus from Barcelona in 2020, Arthur has not been a regular starter for the Old Lady. In the two seasons there, the Brazil international played a total of 3247 minutes (averaging 1623 minutes per season). It is not as if he had long-term injuries hindering his availability. In two years there, he missed a total of 22 games due to short-term injuries.

It was just the managers at Juve did not fancy playing him.

It is not all doom and gloom though (hopefully), let's have a look at what Arthur’s numbers in recent seasons tell us about his game and what he can bring to Liverpool once he is back to full fitness. 

Arthur numbers at Juventus - Ranked

This section will have Arthur’s numbers in the Serie A in the last two seasons, ranked amongst the midfielders in the league. Players with a minimum of 1000 minutes under their belt are included for sample size purposes.

Smart pass. A creative and penetrative pass that attempts to break the opposition's defensive lines to gain a significant advantage in attack.

In terms of defensive duels, the Brazilian is more than a handful, but when we look at the possession-adjusted numbers, there is a lot to be desired. His passing volume and accuracy returns are good, but there aren’t many forward passes or passes that cut through opposition defensive lines.

The 26-year-old had a chance creation rate of one per game in the two seasons in Italy. But, he only lost possession eight times per game in that time, which is better than most midfielders (Squawka).