Club legend Jamie Carragher has reiterated his remarks on Liverpool FC’s decision not to spend the money on a new centre-back in light of injuries to Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez coming back to haunt the Merseysiders’ title-defence campaign.
Potential season-ending layoffs for both Van Dijk and Gomez had led to many in the Reds fanbase, amongst whom was former defender Carragher, to urge Klopp on investing in a new face at the defensive department at Anfield to make up for the major void left by the former duo’s absence.
However, the Liverpool FC boss has been adamant in his decision to go through the ongoing January transfer window without brining in additional reinforcements even as Joel Matip’s recurring troubles on the injury front has forced skipper Jordan Henderson to operate in a makeshift centre-back role.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Carragher was quite critical in his assessment of his old club’s transfer business as the Sky Sports pundit laid the blame solely on the Anfield giants for their reluctance on using the market to solve the injury crisis currently underway at the club.
‘I said then I did not think Liverpool could win the league unless they had a new centre-back in place on January 1,’ Carragher said.
‘They needed one before Joe Gomez was injured. His and Joel Matip’s appearance record was informative of that.
‘Frankly, it is preposterous that three months on and with the transfer window now open, Klopp felt compelled to use Jordan Henderson in the position against Manchester United. And although Fabinho has been outstanding, he would be more influential in midfield. It has caused a chain reaction throughout the team.
‘Maybe the club thought Klopp is so good he can overcome any situation. If so, the last few weeks are a reality check for them.’
