Alongside Jurgen Klopp, few figures have been more influential to Liverpool's recent success than the German's right-hand man, Pep Lijnders.
The Reds assistant manager has helped oversee some of the greatest moments in the club's illustrious history, including ending the 30-year wait for an elusive league title during the stop-start Covid-impacted season of 2019/2020.
In his four-year stay on Merseyside, Lijnders has also seen some of the most gifted footballers to don the famous red shirt in front of the Kop faithful and is now hoping to coach the next generation of Liverpool superstars for at least the next two years following Klopp's recent contract extension.
One of those young starlets comes in the form of Harvey Elliot. The former Fulham talent has long been touted as one of the most promising young players in English football and his reputation has only enhanced since joining the Reds.
The Liverpool number two has waxed lyrical over Elliot's talent in his new book, 'Intensity: Inside Liverpool FC', and made a particularly bold comparison when analysing the teenager's talent.
He wrote: "There is no such thing as like for like in football, but Harvey Elliott has some of the ingredients of Andres Iniesta and thinks like a creative midfielder."
Elliot was not the only figure to come in for huge praise, with Reds right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold also the subject of some big compliments from a coach who has worked up close with some of the game's biggest names.
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"I’m also blessed to have worked with some of the continent’s top talents, including our very own Trent Alexander-Arnold," Lijnders added. "Trent is the epitome of a successful training and coaching process with a young talent.
"I could not be any prouder of the man and the player he has become – from my captain at Under-16 level to one of the world’s best players, with every possible major club medal won by the age of 23. Even at the age of 15, he was this natural technical talent."
While the England international's talent is undeniable, Lijnders has provided an insight into what makes Alexander-Arnold tick and the kind of mentality that ensures the right-back will remain at the top of the game for years to come.
"He had all the characteristics I loved: a mentality to win, passionate to improve – but his emotions sometimes took control instead of him taking control over the emotions. He trained with so much power and competition," Lijnders wrote.
"He has this aggression in a positive way. If someone represents this quote of Bill Shankly, it’s him: ‘Playing at the highest level isn’t pressure, it’s a reward’. I see someone who controls his emotions, a future captain. A leader by example."
Pep Lijnders Intensity: Inside Liverpool FC - Our Identity, published by Reach Sport, is on sale August 4 from Amazon.
