Liverpool are waiting for this nightmare to end, having rediscovered the form of last season that led to the Premier League title and a summer of significant change under Arne Slott.
The signings made this summer were completed after careful study, but despite this, the Reds have lacked identity and inspiration this year, resulting in dismal results. Even when they won, Liverpool gave their opponents plenty of optimism.
It’s worth noting that Liverpool have been much better defensively this season than in previous years, but it has done little to ease the fears of supporters who have been forced to accept a bleak new standard.
Captain Virgil van Dijk was among those bittersweet. He is at the heart of Liverpool’s problems this season, a centre-back lacking the solution he has often been provided with throughout his illustrious career at the club.
Virgil van Dijk leaves the club this season
Liverpool’s monster has been deadly this season with the tailwind of the slot system. Ibrahima Konate’s predicament is undoubtedly exacerbated by Van Dijk’s slow decline in fortitude.
He’s 34 years old and will be 35 at the end of the season. It’s no surprise that the Dutch captain is starting to slow down. But Michael Edwards and sporting director Richard Hughes face a considerable challenge as Konate approaches the end of his £70,000-a-week contract.
Liverpool signed Giovanni Leoni from Parma this summer for around £27 million, but the 18-year-old Italian ruptured his ACL on his debut against Southampton and is not expected to return until the start of next season.
Konate has started every Premier League game this season despite his slump, and the Italian would have provided much-needed dimension in recent months, allowing Slot to further strengthen the rotation. Van Dijk is now lying next to him.
Change is needed and it is clear that Liverpool need a centre-back as the winter transfer window approaches.
Liverpool are targeting a centre-back in January
According to TEAMtalk, Liverpool are set to make a bid for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehy this winter, having resumed direct communication with the player’s agent this week after a deal failed in August.
Guehi’s contract at Selhurst Park expires at the end of the season, but Liverpool took a chance on the 25-year-old at the start of the season and there is now certainly strong rival interest, with Bayern Munich and Real Madrid thought to be potential suitors, especially after agreeing personal terms with the player.
Sources say FSG are willing to offer around £25m for Guehi’s contract in January and are willing to pay a bit of a premium for one of the Premier League’s best centre-backs.
What Gehi brings to Liverpool
Guehi could well have shown his talent at Liverpool now, but not so much that sporting director Richard Hughes took a gamble and arrived late, leaving Palace unable to find a replacement and closing the door at the 11th hour.
I’m really disappointed. Guehi is an experienced Premier League star who continues to evolve. Palace reporter Bobby Munsey hailed him as a “defensive monster”, but he is much more than that.
Over the past year, Guehi has ranked in the top 7% of central defenders in Europe’s top five leagues for through balls, in the top 6% for assists and shot-creating actions, and in the top 15% for tackles gained per 90, according to data-driven site FBref.
The action that creates the shot is part of the play that leads to the shot. This includes the moment a pass, take-on, or foul is drawn.
If Liverpool are successful in signing a two-footed centre-half this winter, they could shoulder the weight of Van Dijk’s one-off deal, having joined from Southampton for £75m midway through the 2017/18 season.
Van Dijk needs no introduction. He is one of the greatest defenders in Premier League history and a giant of the game.
He has integrated himself into Jurgen Klopp’s exciting squad, reinforcing it with steel. He was the mortar that filled the cracks and built a super team.
It’s a tall order, but Guehi is widely watched and could emulate the Dutchman if he arrives midway through the season and provides much-needed relief.
Despite such incredible success in recent years, it is surprising that Liverpool have fallen so far below expected levels. This is at stake and no one signing can completely stop the rot, but Guehi has a combative, confident defensive style that could help get the Reds back on track, and he has build-up qualities that Konate lacks.
It’s Van Dijk-esque, and given that Guehi arrives in January after previously trying to sign, this could bring echoes of that long-awaited, high-flying signing.
