Xherdan Shaqiri was keen to highlight the importance of Liverpool’s fans and the lack of supporters as an explanation for why “smaller teams” have had more luck getting results at Anfield.
The Reds have not won at Anfield since the 2-1 victory over Tottenham in mid-December, a record they’ll hope to change after the international break.
“Everybody knows how our fans are when they push us. Everybody knows how many games we have managed to come back in if we concede a goal,” the former Bayern Munich star told Sky Sports. “I think there are many, many games where you can see that, many examples. Of course, we miss them a lot.”
“For the smaller teams, it is easier to come to Anfield with no fans. There is no pressure. You can see that in many ways and in many games. The smaller teams have more of a chance,” Shaqiri added. “Obviously, the performances have not been what we wanted in the last few months.”
READ MORE: Liverpool youngster suffers devastating ACL injury
How do Liverpool turn around their disastrous home form?
Defensive concerns were the main issues on the agenda after long-term injuries sustained by Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez, not to mention the subsequent sidelining of Jurgen Klopp’s back-up options in the centre of defence.
Considering we’ve not been conceding a lot of goals of late, however, the spotlight has shifted further up the pitch to the midfield and forward line, with the perceived lack of balance in the middle of the park deemed detrimental for our potency in the final third.
The return of Fabinho to the midfield three has supplied exactly what we’ve been missing, adding an extra layer of protection for the back four and, most importantly, freeing up Thiago Alcantara and Gini Wijnaldum to get involved in Liverpool’s build-up play.
With the players we have available, the clear solution for Klopp going forward will be to keep the Brazilian in his favoured midfield spot in order to encourage a turnaround in our Anfield form.
FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM, HERE!