A closer look at Liverpool’s current issues in their full-back positions as the ECHO chats to former Reds defender Glen Johnson
Even with the acceptance that Trent Alexander-Arnold was leaving to join Real Madrid, Arne Slot could not have anticipated so many issues at right-back this season at Liverpool.
The £29m capture of Jeremie Frimpong, officially confirmed at the start of June, was to be supplemented by Conor Bradley taking a step up in seniority within the Premier League champions’ squad as a bright new era approached for the club as the top side in the country.
Frimpong, who was the first arrival of a big-spending summer, has made just one Premier League start since his arrival, however, which came on the opening night against Bournemouth, in mid-August.
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The Netherlands international has suffered successive hamstring injuries and has been limited to just four league appearances as a result. He has been sidelined since October 22 with a return no nearer, according to Slot’s recent update last week.
Bradley, for all his promise, is yet to showcase an ability to handle the intensity of regular football at a club with the demands of Liverpool.
The Northern Ireland international turned in what was likely a career-best performance against Real Madrid on the back of an impressive showing against Aston Villa recently, but pulled up with a fresh issue when on duty for his country during the recent break after a tough examination against Jeremy Doku of Manchester City on what was his third game in eight days for the Reds.
Dominik Szoboszlai has filled in at times, most impressively in August wins against Newcastle United and Arsenal, but it’s been a case of diminishing returns from the Hungary international at right full-back with the general consensus being that one of the few players to emerge with credit this season is being wasted away from his natural midfield position.
Curtis Jones played there during Wednesday night’s miserable 4-1 loss to PSV in the Champions League and while Wataru Endo is another who can ‘do a job’ in the position, the opportunity to use Joe Gomez there has not been taken up by Slot, with the head coach admitting recently the versatile defender is making himself available through the use of pain-killing injections in his knee.
With just Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk fit as the club’s senior centre-backs, Gomez has been kept behind the emergency glass so far and it’s been nearly 12 months since he last started a Premier League fixture.
It means Slot heads to West Ham United on Sunday aiming to end a run of nine defeats in 12 without a specialist right-back once more. Jones, Endo, Gomez and Szoboszlai all offer imperfect solutions at the most inopportune of times.
“Well, obviously there’s a little bit (of change) with the personnel (under Arne Slot),” former Reds defender Glen Johnson tells the ECHO. “And probably the midfielders allowed the full-backs to do what Jurgen Klopp wanted them to do.
“You know, everyone’s got to play their role and for full-backs to get in positions where you’re crossing it almost to the other full back, all the other players need to know that’s happening and fill gaps and give you the confidence to be able to go so high.
“Like I said (under Slot), they look like they’re a little bit more restrained at the moment, but that’s also because maybe the players aren’t comfortable being in those positions.
“So I don’t think it’s the fact that Slot’s stopping them (attacking as much). It’s just a combination of the fact that maybe these players aren’t comfortable that high up. The midfielders aren’t so comfortable sitting back. So I think it’s a mixture of a few things.”
On the opposite side, Slot has not had anywhere near the level of upheaval or injuries but Milos Kerkez is still adapting to life at Liverpool following his £40m move from Bournemouth and is yet to show the quality that included him in last season’s PFA Team of the Year.
Andy Robertson started the victories over Aston Villa and Real Madrid earlier this month but was also in the side that was beaten comfortably by Manchester City before the international break.
An emotionally fraught break ultimately proved to be a successful one for the Scotland skipper as they qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 1998 but he has been left out of the last two games for Slot and is vying for a recall this weekend at the London Stadium.
Johnson, who was speaking on behalf of OLBGsays of Kerkez: “I don’t know if (being at a bigger club) is necessarily what he’s struggling with, but it’s definitely a massive change.
“You know, the mentality in football clubs where they’re happy to finish mid-table, and I’m not talking about Bournemouth, but just in general. Every club’s got their own ambitions for the start of the season.
“If your ambition is to finish eighth and you’re over the moon, then you can afford to lose games. So people haven’t got to be at it all the time. They should be, but they just don’t because they don’t need to.
“So when you go into a club like Liverpool, when you’re almost favourites for every single game you start, you have to win. And losing comes hard.
“But, you know, if you’re mid-table and you lose 10 games a season, it’s like, cool, we’ve got next week. It doesn’t really matter. But if you lose two, three on a bounce at Liverpool, the league’s over. You know, so it’s a totally different mentality.
“Obviously, there are people that can cope with it, but you need the right person. It’s not just about being good enough. You need the right mentality that can deliver it week in, week out, because the standards at Liverpool are totally different to a mid-table team.”
