After an opening half of the season derailed by injury and subsequent recovery, the Germany international re-established himself in the team with a series of strong performances in the centre of the pitch.
His spectacular Goal of the Season at Watford might have created most of the headlines with regards to Can, but the No.23’s application caught Barnes’ eye more than anything else.
“Jürgen Klopp likes hard-working midfield players, look at [Jordan] Henderson, Can and [Georginio] Wijnaldum,” the 53-year-old told Liverpoolfc.com at the LFC World event in Shanghai.
“Can has had a bit of a hard time with the fans at times, but what I like about the Liverpool fans is that if the manager backs you, they back you, regardless of how they may feel.