Curtis Jones has become the latest Liverpool player to embrace a new challenge, stepping into an unfamiliar right-back role during a season full of tactical twists and turns. With Conor Bradley, Jeremie Frimpong, and Joe Gomez all facing their own battles with form and fitness, the Toxteth-born midfielder has answered the call to fill in on the flank.

This shift has helped keep Dominik Szoboszlai in his preferred midfield spot, but it's also highlighted the growing sense that manager Arne Slot is having to fit square pegs into round holes. Still, Jones isn't complaining. Speaking ahead of Liverpool's trip to Aston Villa, the 25-year-old made his priorities clear: "I just enjoy playing. If I'm at right-back, centre-back, or striker, I just want to go and play."

That selfless attitude is exactly what you'd expect from a local lad who bleeds red. Jones admits his heart lies in centre-midfield—"I know I'm good enough and I 'should' be playing there"—but he puts the team first: "It's all about the team, and that's what you have to put first."

The England international has always been comfortable on the ball, so the inverted full-back role makes sense when Liverpool are in possession. Jones describes himself as a "full-back/centre-midfielder," noting that drifting inside still lets him get into dangerous areas to score and assist. But the recent Chelsea draw showed the risks of asking a midfielder to defend that space for 90 minutes, especially when the opposition pushes their own player into an unfamiliar role.

Former Liverpool man Jason McAteer weighed in, saying: "Curtis is not a natural right-back… he likes to drift inside." Chelsea coach Calum McFarlane even admitted that using Marc Cucurella in a similar way was a tactic to "maybe expose" Liverpool's makeshift setup. For now, though, Jones is happy to do whatever it takes—and that's the kind of versatility that keeps a squad ticking through a long, demanding season.