"With Emre you can see the importance of his role and the position he plays in there. Why disrupt that and try and fix something that could actually create another problem?" said Brendan Rodgers when asked whether he would move Can from the defensive role in which he has excelled since Christmas to cover for the injured Lucas Leiva against Tottenham.
It seemed the obvious solution - with Joe Allen seen as the only other viable and yet underwhelming alternative - but Rodgers had another scheme that was hatched against Bolton in the FA Cup, when Can moved forward late in the match "so he could control the game from there, and that pushed the other midfielders forward". Starting with Can in defence and Steven Gerrard in central midfield gave Liverpool a game-changing option; it seems likely that 'Lovren for Gerrard' had long been pencilled into the plans for a match Rodgers knew he simply had to win. On this occasion, bringing on a defender for a midfielder was a proactive, positive move for which the Liverpool manager should be applauded.
Rodgers stood accused of sentimentality when he left an ineffective Gerrard on the pitch for 90 minutes against Everton on Saturday but there was little danger of him repeating that mistake. This time, his moves were made early and decisively, with all three changes making a difference. Can brought an energy and drive into the midfield that Gerrard has lost and Allen never had, while Adam Lallana and Mario Balotelli combined for the vital winner after a fading Daniel Sturridge had exited the stage. Whatever Rodgers' misgivings about Balotelli, he knew that the Italian was far likelier to conjure a winner than the willing but lumbering Rickie Lambert.
This was the Rodgers we had admired from last season, his starting XI screaming energy and intent. Jordon Ibe started once again at right wing-back when Glen Johnson or Jordan Henderson would have been safer options, doubling up with Lazar Markovic to pick on Tottenham's weakest link at left-back. And thus, Liverpool found a way to win without both Sterling and Lucas. It was brave, it was gung-ho, it was refreshing and it was exactly what Rodgers needed to claim what had escaped them since the last time they played Tottenham in August - victory over a side they were not entirely expected to beat.
Central to that was Rodgers' willingness to take risks. Moving Can out of defence was undoubtedly a gamble worth taking with the game poised at 2-2 with 22 minutes left on the clock. Well-timed disruption might just be the key to rescuing this stuttering season; it's certainly more fun than sleepwalking to seventh.
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