Jurgen Klopp may have shown his new Liverpool tactic for next season

It's the part of pre-season that Jurgen Klopp no doubt regards as his imperative.

The money-spinning tour to the Far East is regarded as highly important, with the Liverpool boss knowing how much commercially the club benefits.

Yet the 10-day period away from the autograph signings, opening training sessions and all-round razzmatazz, in the sedate surroundings of the Black Forest is where the Reds' preparations for the 2023-24 campaign begin in earnest. After the testing and fitness tests took place at the AXA Training Centre and preparations started, things will ramp up significantly in Klopp's native Germany.

Having set off from Merseyside on Saturday, Liverpool have wasted little time in Baden-Württemberg. Double sessions have already ensued as Klopp deploys his blueprint to ensure that the Reds are again challenging for the Premier League top four, at a minimum. And from what we have garnered already, there's perhaps an intriguing insight into what Klopp could have planned tactically.

During one mini-game, in one team that lined-up included Mo Salah, Luis Diaz, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Diogo Jota - along with new signings Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. In one swift, sweeping passing move, Szozboszlai - signed from £60 million from RB Leipzig - roamed into the middle of the park. The Hungary international neat pass to Alexander-Arnold before possession was switched to Salah, whose first-time ball found the overlap of Mac Allister. The £35 million arrival from Brighton and Hove Albion then played in a cross from the right flank that Szoboszlai, who'd carried on his run into the box, finished with ease from close range.

Praise from the impressed Klopp could be heard in the background. He'll be enthused that a partnership may be blossoming. And perhaps what made it more facinating was the positions that Mac Allister and Szoboszlai took up in the clip.

During his three-and-a-half years at Leipzig, the right flank was a berth that the latter featured in regularly. Last season, 32 of his 46 appearances (per Transfermrkt) were on that side of the pitch - where he recorded eight of his 12 goals and 12 of his 13 assists.

Should Klopp continue with his 3-2-2-3 formation that bore fruit at the back end of last season - with the Reds going unbeaten in 11 games and finishing fifth - then it could be Szoboszlai who features on the right-hand side of centre-midfield. That was the remit given to Jordan Henderson, whose future remains uncertain amid interest from Saudi Arabia side Al-Ettifaq.

Mac Allister, meanwhile, could be competing with Curtis Jones for the position on the left. However, the 2022 World Cup winner with Argentina is versatile and could also play deeper if required.

Liverpool play their first pre-season of the summer when they face Karlsruher SC on Wednesday. In truth, the clash may be nothing more than a run-out for the Reds squad to get some minutes back into the legs. But it will be facinating to see how Mac Allister and Szoboszlai are utilised in their respective unofficial debuts.