Liverpool have been given a warning about Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez as former Reds star Stan Collymore feels they need to improve their defending.
Arne Slot’s side won the Premier League title last season and Collymore feels they should be the clear favourites to do so again this term.
Writing in his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, however, the pundit expressed a major concern about the team’s current defensive record.
Collymore feels Frimpong and Kerkez have been particularly suspect since joining, even if he’s a fan of what they can offer.
Both are top attacking full-backs, but there’s a clear need for them to improve defensively, or else this Liverpool side might not won the title comfortably like they should be capable of doing.
Major Liverpool concern raised by ex-Red Stan Collymore
Discussing Liverpool’s recent form as they’ve conceded a lot and relied on scoring late goals to get out of trouble, Collymore pointed the finger at Frimpong and Kerkez.
“Liverpool’s way of winning matches with late goals is unsustainable,” Collymore said.
“They are the beneficiaries of scoring late goals and all of the things that come with that, they have shown character, great belief, absolute belief that you’re going to score in the first minute or the last minute.
“But they’ve got to start keeping clean sheets, and that’s going to be down to the protection of Van Dijk and Konate by the likes of McAllister and Gravenberch, which I don’t think has happened enough yet.
“I’m a big fan of Frimpong and Kerkez, but they’ve got to start doing some proper defending.
“Three or four clean sheets in the next six or seven games for Liverpool would mean rectifying the issue, but if they continue in the same vein, they’re going to drop unnecessary points in a Premier League season whereby they could, and should, be winning the league by 9-12 points.
“And thinking about the Champions League, that is a level where they’ll concede a second, they’ll concede a third and concede a fourth if they’re not at their best. That’s where clean sheets are going to be really important, clean sheets win trophies.”
He added: “This Liverpool team, with arguably the world’s still best central defender, with Konate that’s still a very good central defender, and with two players that you signed in Frimpong and Kerkez, that are both very good going forward but also should be good enough going back, they have to be keeping clean sheets.”
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