Some Liverpool fans switch off from football during the international break because they have little love for England.
But it has been a huge window for Curtis Jones, and one that will help him at Liverpool. Jones crowned his England debut with an exquisite backheel against Greece and his performance exuded confidence and showed a player at the very top of his game.
Jones, 23, has supreme self-belief without being arrogant and he is determined to nail down a regular starting place under Arne Slot. It didn’t happen last season after he ended the 2022-23 season well and he is eager to achieve that goal now.
Of all the positions where Liverpool players are excelling, the No 10 role is the one most up for grabs. Dominik Szoboszlai is the natural holder of that position, but the Hungary playmaker continues to be plagued by inconsistency.
He is still performing, as evidenced by his one goal and two assists this season, but he is not playing at his very best. Harvey Elliott has his sights set on that position too and his season was derailed when he fractured his foot training with England Under-21s in September.
He is back training and hopeful of returning against Southampton on Sunday or Real Madrid on Wednesday week. That brings us back to Jones and he is the one candidate improving week by week.
It would be easy to say he is yet another player Arne Slot is getting the best out of, but the Dutchman would be the first to say it is all down to Jones. Jones has a real determination to become a regular fixture at Anfield and Trent Alexander-Arnold is the only homegrown talent they have seen come through in the last decade.
Others, like Jarell Quansah, are on the fringes, but no-one has followed Alexander-Arnold off the conveyor belt of talent which produced Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Steve McManaman. Jones wants to change that and he has the hunger, temperament and talent to do so.
He’s not content with a bit-part role at Liverpool and he wants to be one of the main men under Slot as Liverpool evolve. His performances have risen to a new level this season and he was outstanding last month in the win over Chelsea.
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Not only did he have Chelsea dangerman Cole Palmer in his pocket, he won Liverpool’s penalty for their first goal before bagging the winner. Jones has started six of their last eight games and is slowly making himself indispensable for Slot.
He feels that at 23, this is his moment with Liverpool and England, and becoming a dad last month has only increased that feeling. The Jones Boy is becoming a man for Liverpool.
