Ex-Liverpool star currently the worst player of 2022-23 Premier League season with average rating of 5.9/10
Former Liverpool goalkeeper Danny Ward is currently the Premier League's worst player this season, according to WhoScored's metrics for players who have started at least one game (h/t HITC).
Nottingham Forest's Emmanuel Dennis is currently at the top, or in this case, the bottom of the pile. The Nigerian striker has a WhoScored rating of 5.93 but has played just 88 minutes, which makes him ineligible for inclusion.
Ward, by comparison, has a rating of 5.99 after starting all eight league games for Leicester City. The Foxes goalkeeper was arguably at his worst in the Foxes' 6-2 loss against Tottenham Hotspur on September 17.
Ward has managed a rating of 6.16 or lower seven times this campaign. The only exception was when he was awarded a 7.46 rating in Leicester's 4-0 win against Nottingham Forest on October 4.
Danny Ward after getting his first clean sheet of the season https://t.co/DlR7xpvz4c
It is worth mentioning that at one point, Liverpool were reportedly open to replacing the much-maligned Loris Karius with Ward after the 2018 UEFA Champions League final.
The Reds instead signed Alisson Becker from AS Roma just a few days after their 1-0 loss to Real Madrid in Kyiv. Ward was sold that summer to Leicester for £12.5 million.
He left the Reds after making just three senior appearances. In hindsight, it seems like a shrewd piece of business with the way his season at Leicester has gone so far.
The Wales international has assumed a much more important role in Brendan Rodgers' starting XI after Kasper Schmeichel's move to OGC Nice this summer.
Liverpool easing Caoimhin Kelleher back into the first-team picture
In the past couple of seasons, Caoimhin Kelleher has established himself as Alisson Becker's backup at Liverpool. The Northern Ireland international even started in the 2022 EFL Cup final win against Chelsea despite Alisson being fit.
The game went to penalty shootouts, where Kelleher scored on his turn and was between the sticks when Kepa Arrizabalaga skied his kick. The Reds goalkeeper suffered an injury before the start of the season but is now on his way back to the senior squad.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of Liverpool's 3-3 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion on October 1, Klopp confirmed his plans for Kelleher. He said (h/t ThisIsAnfield):
"Caoimh, I think will play this weekend, U21s. So that he can have a game. It’s obviously not his season yet. He was quite injured for a long time, but looks good in training, is completely fine.”
He started in Liverpool U21's 1-1 Premier League 2 draw against Arsenal U21 at the Axa Training Center on October 1.