Why James Milner could be crucial to Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool

The England midfielder has a proven attribute vital to the 'full-throttle' football expected at Anfield

James Milner (GETTY IMAGES)

Research shows that James Milner could prove crucial to Jurgen Klopp as the new Liverpool manager attempts to instil his philosophy at Anfield.

Upon his arrival at the club last week, Klopp explained: "I am very excited by the challenge we face and eager to start the job and begin implementing our ideas and ways of working with this team. This is a talented group of players and there is still much to compete for this season.

"Winning is important but so is how you win and how you play the game. I believe in a playing philosophy that is very emotional, very fast and very strong. My teams must play at full throttle and take it to the limit every single game."

Klopp became renowned for past-paced, high-tempo football during his successful time at Borussia Dortmund but in order to implement that at Liverpool, he'll need the right players.

Statistics from the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index suggest Milner has the necessary attributes.

For a start, the summer signing has covered has covered more ground than any player in the Premier League so far this season.

Player	Team	Nationality	Matches Played	Distance Covered (KM)
James Milner	Liverpool	England	8	99906.59
Andrew Surman	Bournemouth	England	8	96191.39
Matt Ritchie	Bournemouth	Scotland	8	95415.11
Aaron Ramsey	Arsenal	Wales	8	93565.86
Gareth Barry	Everton	England	8	91901.59

Even more impressively, research shows that Milner has covered more ground in each of his eight matches played than anyone else in the Liverpool squad has in any game. Below illustrates the top 10 distances covered by Liverpool players in a match this season.

Match Date	Opposition	Player	Distance Covered (KM)
12/09/2015	Manchester United	James Milner	12.901
20/09/2015	Norwich City	James Milner	12.708
26/09/2015	Aston Villa	James Milner	12.574
04/10/2015	Everton	James Milner	12.574
29/08/2015	West Ham	James Milner	12.544
24/08/2015	Arsenal	James Milner	12.404
17/08/2015	Bournemouth	James Milner	12.147
09/08/2015	Stoke City	James Milner	12.051
17/08/2015	Bournemouth	Adam Lallana	11.697
20/09/2015	Norwich City	Philippe Coutinho	11.374

No other Liverpool player has covered more than 12km in a match; Milner though has covered over 12km in every single game.

Klopp spoke about the "talented group of players" already available to him at Liverpool. The stats suggest it's likely Milner was in his thoughts.

Data courtesy of the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, the Official Player Rating Index of the Barclays Premier League