Arsene Wenger Questions Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain Move Before Liverpool Clash

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has suggested not a lot has changed for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in his bid to become a consistent starter since he moved from the Gunners to Liverpool in the summer.  

Liverpool and Arsenal meet each other in the Premier League on Friday at the Emirates Stadium with Oxlade-Chamberlain potentially set to start against his old club following his £35 million departure in August.

The England midfielder left Arsenal in search of more game time, but as Wenger pointed out ahead of the key clash, he is in much the same position now as he was during his years in north London, playing from the bench more often than he starts, per David Hytner in the Guardian:

"Is he sure of a place there [at Liverpool]? No? That's the answer. You are sure of a place nowhere. In a big club, you have big competition for every single place. That is absolutely normal.

"What do you want? To be a big player and not have to fight? What do you want on top of that—sitting in your rocking chair and saying: 'I'm a big player? I don't need to fight?' No. It doesn't work like that. Every player can do that and Chamberlain does it. I am convinced it's part of being a top player."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has started Oxlade-Chamberlain just five times in the Premier League this season, while he has appeared 10 times from the bench.

In his final two full seasons at Arsenal, the 24-year-old made 26 appearances in the top flight as a substitute and was named in the starting XI 25 times by Wenger.

As noted by Jeremy Wilson and Julian Bennetts of the Telegraph, Oxlade-Chamberlain has recently been more important for Liverpool and, unlike Wenger at Arsenal, Klopp is deploying him in his preferred central-midfield position:

The England international was excellent as Liverpool thrashed Bournemouth 4-0 last weekend at the Vitality Stadium, playing alongside Jordan Henderson and Georginio Wijnaldum in a midfield three.

It is potentially a position in which Oxlade-Chamberlain could flourish if he is given an extended run in the first team, but he continues to have plenty of competition for his spot.

That could change if Philippe Coutinho were to leave the club, not an impossibility given Barcelona continue to be heavily linked with the Brazilian playmaker, per Sport (h/t Tom Coast of Sport Witness).

However, Oxlade-Chamberlain still needs to prove that, for all his obvious talent, he can consistently contribute for a club as big as Liverpool.

As noted by Wilson, it could be that the former Southampton man is "simply overrated" and will never become a top player.

However, he is still only 24 and has time to prove he is worthy of his lofty price tag and the hype that has surrounded him since he was a teenager.