Liverpool legend thinks Dejan Lovren injury is a ‘blessing’

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Nobody should ever express gladness at a footballer’s injury, but former Liverpool star and media pundit Mark Lawrenson is happy Dejan Lovren’s currently unavailable.

In fact, the Irishman has slaughtered the Croatian, who limped out of the League Cup penalty victory over Carlisle last week, via EuroSport.

“He had a spell of two or three good games at the start of this season and you thought ‘you know what, maybe he’s going to be fine’,” Lawrenson began.

“Wrong. His decision-making is absolutely awful. Awful.

“What on earth was he thinking for the goal Carlisle scored in midweek? He should have gone and closed the ball down, not least as there were two other centre-backs to cover.

“Instead he came rushing out. It’s like he had never, ever defended before in his life, let alone been a £20million international centre-back.

“You never want anyone to be injured, and you wouldn’t wish a serious injury on anybody.

“But the timing of Lovren’s absence could be a blessing in disguise for both player and team.”

Lawrenson thinks that in Lovren’s place Mamadou Sakho or possibly summer signing Joe Gomez will get more chances – which he sees as a good thing.

“It’s now a big chance for Mamadou Sakho to stake a regular claim and maybe even for Joe Gomez to, at some stage, impress in his favoured position.”

Lawrenson is probably right in a football sense. We’re a better side with Sakho in the team than with Lovren, but his comments will do nothing to help the former Southampton man, who is likely to be extremely low having picked up the problem which saw him carried off the pitch on a stretcher.

Alongside Martin Skrtel, Sakho now has the chance to prove to Brendan Rodgers why he should have been in the side from the start of this season.

Now we’re playing a three-man central defence, Gomez will potentially also get chances to play in his favoured position, having been used as a left-back in our opening matches.

 

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