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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Six points from six in the Premier League, and a UEFA Super Cup to boot too. Not bad for a start to the season for Liverpool. But scratch beneath the surface, and not all is well at Anfield. Jurgen Klopp’s side were the defensive kings in English football last season, conceding just 22 goals in the top-flight yet in the opening weeks of the campaign, the Reds have looked anything but certain in defence.
Against Norwich, Klopp’s men were caught out a number of times in transition, with the likes of Emiliano Buendia and Teemu Pukki causing all sorts of problems through their movement – between them taking five efforts at goal and creating five chances. The Liverpool back-four didn’t look organised and but for some profligate finishing from the newly-promoted side, could have ended up suffering more than just the one goal.
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Then against Chelsea, Olivier Giroud – who has never been blessed with pace – found himself running clear from the Liverpool centre-backs on a few occasions. The errors against the Canaries and the Blues were more to do with the collective; against Southampton on Saturday, it was an individual error that cost them courtesy of Adrian’s howler.
Their much-vaunted attack has so far managed to bail out their defence, but the Reds’ next couple of fixtures will certainly offer a stiffer test of their defensive credentials. Against Arsenal at Anfield, it is entirely feasible Unai Emery will finally unleash his big-money attacking trident of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe. Their pace, movement and clinical finishing will examine whether the Reds have made significant improvements collectively from recent weeks and can return to the standards of last season.
Burnley the following week will offer arguably a test of the opposite. The Clarets will test out the Reds’ willingness to embrace the one-to-one duels, both in the air and on the ground. Sean Dyche’s men are notoriously rugged and direct, and the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip will have to be at the top of their games to grind a result out.
So far, the Reds have yet to see their results affected by their defensive lapses. The next couple of weeks however could be the breaking point if Klopp doesn’t get his back-line sorted out.
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