Liverpool's Centre-Back Crisis Ahead of Premier League Season
Andoni Iraola will take Liverpool into the new Premier League season with a squad that looks worryingly thin in key areas, and nowhere is the concern sharper than at the heart of his defence.
Centre-back crisis as season looms
With the trip to Newcastle just a week away, Virgil van Dijk stands as the only fully fit senior centre-back. Around him, it’s a patchwork of injuries, recoveries and stopgaps.
New £60million signing Jacquet has barely been seen. An unspecified issue kept him out of the recent 3-2 defeat to Monaco, adding to the frustration after his final season at Rennes was cut short by a shoulder injury. He has not played a minute of pre-season so far.
There is at least a sliver of good news. Jacquet has returned to full training and is thrown straight into the starting XI against Como, a calculated risk from Iraola as he tries to accelerate the defender’s adaptation without breaking him again.
The manager is clearly unwilling to gamble everything on that working. He has already dipped back into the market to bring in Ronald Araujo on loan from Barcelona, a significant reinforcement on paper. For now, though, the Uruguay international has to wait his turn; he starts the evening on the bench.
Injuries, exits and a reshaped back line
The problems do not end there. Giovanni Leoni is still on the long road back from the ACL injury he suffered on his debut a year ago, his recovery continuing in the background while the season rushes towards Liverpool.
Joe Gomez, meanwhile, is facing a disrupted start. He limped off during the 4-2 win over Sunderland in the USA last month, replaced by youngster Ifeanyi Ndukwe after picking up a muscle injury. That setback is expected to rule him out of the opening phase of the campaign.
Then there’s the one departure Iraola could not control. Ibrahima Konate walked away on a free transfer at the end of his contract and has since joined Real Madrid, stripping Liverpool of another senior option in central defence at precisely the wrong time.
Midfield issues and returning World Cup stars
Further up the pitch, Curtis Jones has been battling a hip problem while his name continues to circle in transfer discussions with Inter Milan. He returned to training this week after missing the Monaco defeat, but he does not feature against Como, a reminder that his situation is still finely balanced.
Victor Munoz and Alexis Mac Allister are back from their post-World Cup breaks and have already been eased in. Both started with Liverpool’s second string in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Como on Sunday, a 70-minute workout at the training ground that finished goalless.
Munoz has at least edged a little closer to the real thing. He makes the bench for the second meeting with the Italian side and will be hoping Iraola turns to him for more minutes under the Anfield lights.
The season starts at St James’ Park in days, not weeks. Iraola knows it. The question now is whether this patched-up, reshuffled squad can hold firm long enough for reinforcements and recoveries to catch up with his ambition.
