While the last week has been pretty much faultless from a Liverpool point of view, one man has found a concern that may need to be addressed by manager Jurgen Klopp.
What’s been said?
The Reds cruised to a 2-0 victory against Chelsea yesterday which maintained our unbeaten run and 100% start to the new season. There were many mouthwatering performances on show for us all to get excited about.
Sadio Mane scored a fantastic double that got us over the line, Thiago Alcantara made his debut in the second half and completely controlled the game, despite Frank Lampard’s side being down to 10 men. But one player surprised many I believe, and that was Fabinho.
Normally a defensive midfielder, the Brazilian powerhouse moved to centre back for us due to injuries to both Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, which leaves Virgil van Dijk as our only established central defender.
Speaking after the game on Sky Sports (20/09, 7:00 pm), former Liverpool fan favourite Jamie Carragher expressed his concerns about this and believes that our faith should be stripped from one of those players.
Should Liverpool invest in another centre-back?
Yes
No
“There’s been talk of Liverpool maybe needing a centre-back,” he said. “Lovren has left and Joel Matip you cannot trust fitness-wise, and that just leaves Joe Gomez.
“I thought he [Fabinho] was outstanding [against Chelsea]. Normally players who play in the centre of the pitch, certainly a holding midfield role and they fill in for people at different times, they read the game really well. They have a great understanding of the game.
Carragher went on to discuss Manchester City’s Fernandinho and the fact he plays a similar role with his club that Fabinho plays with us.
“At times watching Fernandinho play that position for Man City, I thought he was excellent, at times last season and he [Fabinho] was just brilliant today. I think that puts to bed any thought Liverpool may have had in needing another centre-back because they’ve got so many midfield players, and in some way, they have got to get them games. He was outstanding.”
Reinforcements required
Carragher makes a good point. This is not the first injury that the £28.8m-rated man has had and I certainly doubt it will be the last. Therefore it would not be foolish to ensure that we have sufficient cover in the defensive areas to negotiate any possible reoccurrences.
So we need a player that would not be too fussed if he was to be placed on the bench, and would be happy to be a squad player for us for the next couple of seasons.
A few years ago, we were linked with a £45m move for Brighton’s Lewis Dunk. Of course, he wouldn’t cost that now with his market value currently at £18m, according to TransferMarkt.
For me, Dunk would fit into that mould and would bring that bit of quality that is needed to our already strong side.
But with the 28-year-old being the Seagulls skipper, it might be tricky to lure him away from the Amex Stadium.