Peter Crouch emphasised that the loss of Fabinho – and, at times, Jordan Henderson – in the midfield is one of several major contributing factors behind Liverpool’s poor form of late.
Following the anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained by Virgil van Dijk in October, Jurgen Klopp has been forced to rely on the Brazilian as a makeshift defender.
It has proved a more than shrewd move by the German, though at great cost to the midfield, which formerly benefitted from the exciting partnership of the Reds’ skipper and our No.3.
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This has been assuaged, to an extent, by the introduction of Thiago Alcantara to the centre of the park, however, the additional loss of Joe Gomez has meant that we have been forced at times to further detract from the midfield by dropping Henderson in defence.
The sacrifice made by both midfielders, to varying degrees, has undeniably had a negative impact on the general workings of the team, culminating with other factors (such as the loss of Van Dijk’s presence) to translate into poor results.
We can only hope that Joel Matip will be able to maintain his fitness levels in the second-half of the season, so that our No.14 may, at the least, remain in his most influential position.
You can watch the full clip below (from 2:10), courtesy of the Blood Red podcast: