Curtis Jones Talks Growing Role and Upcoming Challenges

Saying this season has been a challenge for Liverpool would be an understatement. They’ve suffered a slate of devastating injuries and found it difficult to live up to the lofty standards they’ve created over the previous two campaigns.

Though there are many things to bemoan and regret about the craziness of Liverpool football in the time of COVID, there are still some bright spots. Perhaps the best development of this season is the emergence of Curtis Jones as a star in the making.

Jones had the opportunity to talk about his seemingly ever-growing role in the squad during a recent interview with LiverpoolFC.com. Though he’s surprised at the number of games he’s received this year, he always felt comfortable in the squad.

“I’ve always been settled!” Jones said. “Two years ago, I don’t think I would ever have thought that I would have played this amount of games. It’s been a positive period for me on a personal note.”

“But I’m happy I’m doing well. I’m a player who wants to be counted on and hopefully, I can help the boys out going forward.”

Jones plays with a clear air of confidence despite his youth, and regardless of the opposition or the occasion, he has rarely looked out of place in the Liverpool midfield. This includes a tough loss against Manchester City in which the 20-year-old felt as though he played well despite the result.

“I’ve always said that I’m a confident lad who likes to get the ball and try to make things happen. That’s what I was trying to do [against Manchester City]. It was a hard game, it was a great test for me and a great experience – and I think I did OK.”

Looking ahead to Liverpool’s match against Leicester City tomorrow, the Scouser admits that he expects another difficult test against a team looking to avenge their November loss to the Reds. However, he is confident in the squad’s preparation for the Foxes.

”I’ve always said every game we play in the Premier League is always a hard game – Leicester especially because of the certain players they have, and their style of play is hard to break down.

“But we played them at the beginning of the season and it was a great team performance and we came away with a great win. I think they’ll be trying to put things right and give us a bit of a knockdown again. But the boys are 100 percent ready and we can’t wait.”

Leicester is just the first of three straight high-profile matches for Liverpool. Up next is the first leg of their Champion’s League tie with RB Leipzig, and then a matchup with Everton at Anfield. Jones acknowledged it’s a tough schedule, but, channeling his inner Jürgen Klopp, he stressed the importance of taking it one match at a time.

“It’s going to be a hard run against three great teams who are doing well, who’ll be very good but in different ways – and we know that as a team and as a bunch of lads. But we just take each game as it comes and we’ll just see what each game holds for us. But hopefully it’s all positive and hopefully we can get wins out of each one.”