Jurgen Klopp’s failure to resolve Liverpool’s defensive woes is threatening to derail their hopes of success this season, but he has been handed a golden opportunity to secure a short term fix for their problems.
Javier Mascherano’s announcement that he will consider his Barcelona future next summer should trigger an immediate response from Klopp, hopefully with a view to bringing in the Argentinian during the January transfer window.
The Argentinian has already announced he will retire from international football after the World Cup in Russia, but his club future has yet to be decided.
“I have my contract to honour with the club but obviously, once the season is over we’ll see what needs to be done – I haven’t spoken to anyone about it yet,” he told TyC Sports.
“At Barcelona, they’ve always said that they’re happy with me and I have time to think about it.
“It’s clear that I’m playing less for my club because we have two centre-backs who are better.
“I am trying to battle to win my place – or at least be ready when I am called on.
“When you have a better player ahead of you in the pecking order, you accept it and try to turn the situation around – that’s all you can do. I’m not the kind of person to get annoyed about it, and even less with the coach.”
The 33-year-old is obviously approaching the end of his career, but he still has plenty to offer and would be a great fit for Liverpool.
With Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren yet to convince they can operate successfully in a flat back four, adding Mascherano into the mix in a sweeper role could help shore up Liverpool’s leaky defence.
Mascherano is already familiar with the Premier League having previously played for West Ham United and Liverpool – he could quite feasibly be a short term solution to Klopp’s problems at the back.
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