“It’s effective because I’m in the lineup.”

Those were the playful words of Curtis Jones, accompanied by a broad grin, when he was questioned about Arne Slot’s new 4-4-2 diamond formation on Tuesday evening.

Jones was clearly in a jovial mood, cracking jokes in a bustling corridor deep within San Siro. Moments earlier, he had been amusedly capturing footage on his phone as Virgil van Dijk found himself surrounded by approximately 20 eager reporters, all vying for his comments on various developments.

“The new setup is about getting everyone involved. It’s challenging to keep the entire squad content, especially with the recent games we’ve lost. The aim is to refresh things and introduce a change, which is exactly what we’ve done.”

While the new formation might not have the permanence suggested by the 1971 James Bond film “Diamonds Are Forever,” Slot’s strategy introduces a more robust Liverpool. This approach helps the team reclaim what the head coach values most: control.

Arne Slot’s formation change at Liverpool has allowed him to wrestle back the control he craves in games

Curtis Jones (back, second right) highlighted how it allows Slot to get all of his star players into the side

The diamond is not glistening quite like the free-flowing 4-2-3-1 in the first of last season. It is arguably less easy on the eye and will not get bums off seats in the same way some of the best Reds sides have over the last decade.

So in many ways fans would not want diamonds to be for ever. But right now it has solved a problem that many teams were exploiting. The Premier League is packed with elite-level coaches and plenty had found a way to bully the English champions.

This narrow formation allows Slot to have four midfielders on the pitch at any given time. On Tuesday, it was Dominik Szoboszlai tucking in from the right wing and Alexis Mac Allister as an all-action No10, with Ryan Gravenberch and Jones also in there.

In truth, it is hard to label any of their positions – it was fluid and they all popped up everywhere, as seen by this heat map and touch map of the four players.

It is one game so let’s not get carried away and label them Liverpool’s modern-day Fab Four. Maybe ‘awesome foursome’ can do for now as the midfielders, three of which all signed in the same summer of 2023, are coming good on Slot’s desire for patience and control.

There is undoubtedly fine tuning needed for this system. Surely Joe Gomez, for all the defensive stability he brings, is not the best-suited man to be the sole player holding the width on the right wing. Attacking wing back Jeremie Frimpong, soon to be fit, might love this style.

Milos Kerkez, who has struggled for form since joining Liverpool, could find something similar. The Hungarian was signed for his all-round game but undoubtedly his attacking runs from left back at Bournemouth were what caught the eye for the Reds’ scouting team.

The front two of Hugo Ekitike, who drifted out left a lot, and Alexander Isak can only get better as a partnership. Two individually classy forwards but not a unit yet, it is fair to say. They completed zero passes to one another in the win at Inter Milan.

Liverpool’s midfield – featuring Alexis Mac Allister (left) and Dominik Szoboszlai (right) – was fluid throughout the win over Inter Milan

There is still work to be done in the front two – neither Hugo Ekitike (left) or Alexander Isak (right) completed a pass to the other one Tuesday

Cody Gakpo is a winger by trade but can operate in a similar role to Ekitike when he is fit again, though he is set to be out for a few weeks with an injury.

The system also suits Florian Wirtz. The German superstar can get on the ball more often with Liverpool’s play now being more narrow and, though he did not start in the San Siro due to fitness worries, he is the sort of player Slot can build the team around.

Asked if the squad is behind the manager, Jones said: ‘We always are. We always are. He is human at the end of the day. If we get beat in games, it affects him, it affects us all too the same way it affects fans.

‘He is a positive man, he always makes a change (to the tactics when needed). The style of play has changed a bit. He is as hungry as ever, exactly the same with us. He is there with us and we are there with him as well.’

It is early days for this new system but so far, so good. A win in the San Siro is always to be celebrated, especially one built on such solid defensive foundations and patient build-up play. Maybe not exciting but efficient.

And so it is probably time to assess the elephant in the room. Does he suit the system? You know who is meant by that… Mohamed Salah.

The answer is probably yes. Playing in a front two would probably suit the great Egyptian as he would have less defensive duties and be able to operate in the channel between the centre half and left full back.

But even if it does not fit Salah’s best traits, he knows diamonds are not really for ever. The other thing he may have noted, though, is that Slot responded to Salah calling him out by finding a quick fix that made Liverpool look back to their best again.

Slot won this battle with his tactics but the civil war brewing at Anfield is not over just yet.