Liverpool made it five Premier League victories in as many games with a 3-1 win against Newcastle United at Anfield on Saturday, going five points clear at the top of the table as a result.
The Reds’ 100% winning start to the new campaign is impressive as they come, but their defensive fragilities will surely leave manager Jurgen Klopp worried.
Liverpool lost Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson to a calf injury against Norwich City on the opening weekend of the season, and his absence has surely dealt a huge blow on their defensive strength.
As a result, the Anfield outfit haven’t looked impressive at the back so far this term, and Premier League legend Alan Shearer is concerned.
“As for Liverpool, they didn’t look great defensively either against Newcastle, as they haven’t for most of their first five games,” Shearer wrote in The Sun.
“After five games last season they had three clean sheets, compared to just one this time around.
“But while they haven’t looked as solid they are getting the job done – and going forward they have been red hot. They’ve won their first five games and sit pretty at the top with a five point lead, so you can’t really grumble.”
While Alisson’s cover Adrian has often looked shaky, he isn’t solely to be blamed for Liverpool’s recent defensive shortcomings.
Keeping things very tight at the back made all the difference for the Merseysiders last season, and failure to repeat those defensive heroics this term could have catastrophic effects on their campaign domestically and on the continent.
It will be interesting to see how Liverpool fare defensively going forward this term, but Klopp will surely hope things can get better.
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