Liverpool’s best XI - where do they need to improve?
The wheels have well and truly come off Jurgen Klopp’s high-octane juggernaut. For much of the campaign, the Reds looked likely to be Chelsea’s main Premier League title rivals, as their opponents simply couldn’t cope with the relentlessness of Liverpool.
However, since the turn of the year, Klopp’s men have mustered just one victory as they have slipped to fifth and out of the League Cup.
Where is it going wrong? Does Klopp have the personnel to turn things around? Here we pick our strongest Liverpool XI and evaluate where they need to improve most.
Goalkeeper - Simon Mignolet
An obvious area for concern is the goalkeeping position. The well-documented struggles of Loris Karius have hindered the Reds at times - he made errors leading to a goal twice in successive games in December - but Simon Mignolet hasn’t exactly stepped up to the plate when called up.
A recent goalkeeper study by football agency GK1 Management concluded that Karius’s ‘shot response’ performance ranked 19th in the division. This is how well a goalkeeper deals with a shot - does he parry to safety, keep hold of the ball or palm it straight in front of him?
However, Mignolet didn’t fair particularly well in the same study either, with Karius adjudged to have faced more ‘difficult shots on average’. Despite this, it is Karius’s nervous disposition after being thrust into the limelight that sees him benched.