Who is Joao Carlos Teixeira?

Brought in by Brendan Rodgers back in 2012 from Sporting Lisbon after excelling against the Reds in the NextGen series has not yet lived up to the hype surrounding him when he joined Liverpool by making just  2 appearances for the first team since arriving in Merseyside. Dubbed as “the new Deco” he has huge boots to fill but getting into the first team will not be an easy task when there are extremely talented players already filling his position at attacking midfield.

Style of Play

Teixeira is an attacking midfielder – a number eight or ten. Just like his role model, the legend Kaka’, he likes to play in the middle but can also play in the flanks if necessary. He has the capacity to glide almost effortlessly past opponents, provide defence-splitting passes and score consistently from distance and is quick, strong, agile, highly skilful and creative team player with excellent balance, capable of dribbling past defenders in one on one situations as well as during counterattacks. He also has a great vision and passing ability, enabling him to create chances for teammates.

Strengths:

Just like his hero Kaka, the 22-year-old excels with the ball at his feet. He is incisive with his passing and rarely looks troubled when in possession, no matter how much pressure he comes under. He is very attack-minded and is always looking for an opportunity to assist his striker through a clever pass or an intelligent run. Confident with either foot, he has also demonstrated a calmness in front of goal that makes him a genuine threat when in the final third.

Weaknesses:

Teixeira has to improve his defensive skills. This is not just his tackling but understanding his duties and making sure he tracks runners whenever the opposition has the ball.

What does his future hold?

After contributing with some strong performances for Rodgers’ first team during pre-season, Teixeira has been relegated to a reserve role so far in 2015/16, with even the new manager preferring to name both Danny Ings and Divock Origi on his substitutes bench despite playing a single-striker system.

However, Klopp has vowed to give youngsters a chance to impress him since arriving in Merseyside and proved this by naming 3 academy players on the bench against Tottenham Hotspur, one of whom being 22-year-old Teixeira. Klopp is playing a 4-3-2-1 formation and this does not directly suit the way João plays as he is more of a central player playing in behind the strike force but now he has to quickly adapt to a wide role if he has to have any future in the team. But with the likes of Ibe, Firmino and Lallana already being played in the roles alongside Coutinho behind either Benteke or Origi, Teixeira will certainly struggle for game time even if the star names are under-performing.