Liverpool legend Graeme Souness has urged the Premier League club to invest in another starting centre-back alongside Virgil van Dijk.
The focus for Liverpool in the most recent transfer window was to replenish their midfield, which led to the signings of Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.
However, no other area of the squad was added to, which could catch up with an albeit reinvigorated Liverpool if they are not careful.
According to Souness, one player they lack is a reliable partner for Virgil van Dijk at centre-back, since the three contenders to start alongside the Dutchman have issues with the consistency of either their form or fitness.
“I still think they need another centre-half, alongside Virgil van Dijk,” Souness told the Daily Mail.
“Jurgen can’t be sure Joel Matip will be consistently fit and I’m not sure Joe Gomez or Ibrahima Konate are consistent enough to hold that place in a team looking to win the Premier League and ultimately the Champions League. They had 20-year-old Jarell Quansah making his debut at Wolves.
“Jurgen won’t be happy that his team have conceded first in five of their eight games this season, though they have come back to win or draw, in a way that they often didn’t last season.”
Konate was the last centre-back Liverpool signed, back at the start of the summer 2021 transfer window. However, the former RB Leipzig stopper has encountered various issues with injuries.
Matip, 32, is into the final year of his contract at Anfield, while Gomez has lost his place as a regular starter since the serious injury he suffered during the 2020-21 season.
Questions have even been raised about Van Dijk’s long-term credentials, since he is the wrong side of 30 and not quite as dominant as he once was, but as the successor to Jordan Henderson in the Liverpool captaincy role, he remains the main man in the backline for Klopp’s side.
