Jump to content
  • Sign up for free and receive a month's subscription

    You are viewing this page as a guest. That means you are either a member who has not logged in, or you have not yet registered with us. Signing up for an account only takes a minute and it means you will no longer see this annoying box! It will also allow you to get involved with our friendly(ish!) community and take part in the discussions on our forums. And because we're feeling generous, if you sign up for a free account we will give you a month's free trial access to our subscriber only content with no obligation to commit. Register an account and then send a private message to @dave u and he'll hook you up with a subscription.

The Klopp conundrum: Should we bolster our defensive stocks in January? - by Jason Harris


tlw content
 Share

Recommended Posts

It has been a fantastic last ten days or so for the Reds. Three wins in the league and a terrific all-round (albeit wasteful) performance in securing our place in the knockout stages of the Champions League.

 

Those performances have defined our season in a nutshell and to this point it has been a campaign to be quietly proud of.

 

While the football hasn’t been as scintillating to watch as previous campaigns, it is clear that we are a much more balanced side and not purely dependent on one individual.

 

If has been a credit to Jurgen and the squad that we have been able to go toe to toe with the colossus that is Man City, who if you believed the pre-season pundits, would stroll away with the league.

 

That constant pressure along with a highly motivated Chelsea side caused them to blink first in the title race, but it has to be noted that they are still the favourites with their depth across the board. This seems bizarre given how strong the Reds look but it's an ideal time to take advantage of this and pile on Klopp's men using the Betfair promo code

 

With ever growing confidence, the Reds certainly have the opportunity to keep pushing City all the way.

 

If you were to highlight an area of why we have started so well, it would undoubtedly be the improvement of the defence.

 

As we fans know all too well in the past, the back four has been a lingering black cloud over our progression as a side.

 

While there were capable individuals in their own right, there appeared to be a real lack of belief that they could produce on a game-to-game basis.

 

The talismanic figure of Virgil Van Dijk and the clear confidence of goalkeeper Alisson have completely transformed that mentality in a matter of months.

 

Add those elements with the continuing growth of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson and Joe Gomez, and dependable backups in Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren, and we have arguably not had this level of depth in our defensive ranks for well over a decade.

 

Unfortunately in the past week we have lost Gomez and his central defensive replacement Matip to long-term injuries at a crucial juncture of the season, while the immediate playing future of Alexander-Arnold is up in the air after a foot injury sustained against Napoli.

 

gomez3_600.jpg

 

The next man up is Lovren to partner the big Dutchman, but as we have noted this season, he has certainly not been immune from picking up niggling injuries of his own.

 

With the January transfer window looming ever closer on the horizon, there is a now a fascinating discussion to be had.

 

Do we stick with what we have and put our faith in some makeshift options for the next few weeks (e.g. Fabinho at CB which has been discussed in dispatches) or do we look to see what is around in the market place?

 

For most teams, their mind is already set over whether they delve into the market next month or let it pass through.

 

In an ideal world, you would be reluctant to have an interest as there isn't a whole lot of value around, and savvy clubs are likely to up their selling price knowing there will be a 'sucker' willing to pay a crazy fee.

 

There is always the loan option, something that Klopp did early in his early tenure with Steven Caulker.

 

While that example wouldn't classify as a success by any measure, when you are down on numbers, it is certainly wise to look at experienced reinforcements.

 

Klopp is a big advocate for giving youth a opportunity on the big stage, but he is not the type of manager to throw the likes of Nat Phillips and Conor Masterson into the heat of the battle without some decent preparation first.

 

Bar the Van Dijk purchase last January, the German is someone who sticks to his lot at this time of the season, which over time has caused some consternation among the fanbase.

 

A personal opinion is that it never hurts to look around in our current situation. You don't want to look back in the off season and say - What if?

 

It definitely doesn't have to be a world-beater, but just someone who can fill a need, taking some heat off 'big Virg' who has played all but 35 minutes in the league this season.

 

At the end of the day Klopp is a far better person than you, I or anyone else to make a judgement.

 

But it is always a lot of fun pretending we know best.

 

Jason Harris


View full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No defenders needed. Unless we can get a back up/promising fullback and Clyne or Moreno go. 

 

Further forward still think we need another forward. Happily see Sturridge go to make room. Also get Solanke a loan Newcastle or somewhere in Germany maybe ideas. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Lee909 said:

Further forward still think we need another forward. Happily see Sturridge go to make room. Also get Solanke a loan Newcastle or somewhere in Germany maybe ideas. 

Pulisic’s got 1 year left on his contract come the summer.

 

Whether he chooses to come here or not is another matter of course, but won’t be surprised if that’s what Klopp has his eye on, having cleared the decks of Solanke (loan), Origi (permanent transfer) and Sturridge (Dignitas) to make room.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Possibly but I reckon if any deal is done it will be for the end of the season. They'll only sell now for a bump in the summer price. So reckon we would give them a little more to do deal in summer but get it signed now. Especially after we draw them in the Champions League on Monday 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

None of the big clubs will loan to us. 

The two games we would really need the depth for any loans wouldn't be done in time anyway. Gomez isn't expected to be out that long and Matip expected back start of Feb I really don't see why we would loan/buy anyone. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/13/2018 at 7:06 PM, Paul said:

Bring back Klavan. 

A fair argument that we shouldn't have sold him given Matip's injury record and Lovren's erratic displays at certain crucial times. If we are serious about going for the title we cannot leave ourselves with too small a squad. I fully expect Fabinho to step into centre half personally.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Carvalho Diablo said:

If we're gonna spend then spend big, De Ligt or Pavard would be sensational signings. Gomez, Matip and Lovren are all too injury prone.

That's a little harsh grouping Gomez with the others. Gomez's injury is unfortunately mostly on Klopp playing him at right back and being taken out by a shit fullback. He's been found to be a solid center back so play him there. Why put players out of position? Milner can do a job there but it's not his position - play him there if necessary. Fabinho can do a job there but it's not his position - play him there if necessary. Gomez and van Dijk should be nowhere near that position. If necessary, sign another right back rather than risking your best players in that position.

 

Matip and Lovren are way too injury prone and need to be replaced ASAP.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, aRdja said:

Get a solid PL-experienced guy on loan I reckon. Someone like Gary Cahill for example. Ideally we wouldn’t need him to play at all, but just in case. 

Cahill would get into our team above Lovren. But Lovren's always injured anyway. Same with Matip.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

36 minutes ago, Shooter in the Motor said:

That's a little harsh grouping Gomez with the others. Gomez's injury is unfortunately mostly on Klopp playing him at right back and being taken out by a shit fullback. He's been found to be a solid center back so play him there. Why put players out of position? Milner can do a job there but it's not his position - play him there if necessary. Fabinho can do a job there but it's not his position - play him there if necessary. Gomez and van Dijk should be nowhere near that position. If necessary, sign another right back rather than risking your best players in that position.

 

Matip and Lovren are way too injury prone and need to be replaced ASAP.

Completely agree with this Shooter, but don't misunderstand me, I'm a huge Gomez fan (esp at cb), the lad's been sensational this season, but his recurring injuries are a real concern.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...