I think Laporte will become our best defender for years to come
He'll be huge for us. This season as well. Let's face it Otamendi trying to chase down Aubameyang doesn't give you confidence. Laporte did well against him.
Agree, especially if given time his long range passing is excellent & pinpoint.
However, I for one hope Pep does not ever again task Aymeric to cover Salah as a makeshift left back like last season. Looked woefully exposed in that position, that did not play to his skillset whatsoever.
If Mendy is playing then Laporte essentially becomes the left back. Mendy high up means when balls are thrown into channels on our left Laporte has to be there to cover. Laporte was exposed but It all comes down to our style of play and how high Pep pushes the team up. Lets face it we won't play a low block and get all our men behind the ball. Of all our defenders on the left I think Laporte is the best option to cover Salah. Mendy or even Delph won't be able to handle him.
Delph would be better. Laporte started the 3-0 loss against pool and didn’t look too convincing against Salah. In the 4-3 loss Delph got injured early on.
Delph is our best option against Salah and other stars. He’s good defensively and quicker than Laporte.
I guess we'll see what Pep decides. Having Delph in the team instead of Mendy won't keep Salah honest defensively. Having Mendy in the team means Salah would have to track back defensively and pin him back at least.