Martin Keown has warned Liverpool that signing Virgil van Dijk will not suddenly solve their defensive problems, and urged Jurgen Klopp to play Joe Gomez alongside the £75million man.
The Reds announced the signing of the Netherlands international enforcer on Wednesday, with the fee for Van Dijk a world-record £75million.
The 26-year-old becomes the most-expensive defender in history, surpassing the previous holder of that record, Benjamin Mendy, by £23million.
In his column for the Daily Mail, former Arsenal defender and regular BBC pundit Keown has now spoken out about the move.
He has made the bold suggestion to pair emerging English talent Gomez in the heart of defence alongside Van Dijk, meaning the likes of Dejan Lovren, Ragnar Klavan and Joel Matip would be pushed to the sidelines at Anfield.
Keown said: “Virgil van Dijk is an important signing for Liverpool, but while centre back is a position Jurgen Klopp needed to strengthen, one player will not fix the problems in his defence. What Klopp should do now is use this as an opportunity to form a new partnership in the heart of Liverpool’s back-line, by moving Joe Gomez into the middle to play alongside his record signing.
“While Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip are too cumbersome and lack mobility, Van Dijk and Gomez are both quick players who would complement each other well. Gomez has earned his stripes playing out wide but at times, such as in last week’s 3-3 draw at Arsenal, he has looked like a centre half playing at right back. It is time for Gomez to be given his chance at centre back.
“There have been too many changes to Liverpool’s defence this season. It is one thing rotating your forward players but frequent changes to the back line can breed instability. This is a great chance for Klopp to take a sharper look at what is best defensively for his side in the long term and start to work with a settled back four.”
Keown is spot on about one signing not being enough to fix Liverpool’s problems at the back, and that is the key here. The Reds cannot become complacent and believe that Van Dijk is the final solution, despite the 26-year-old showing himself to be one of the league’s best defenders at Southampton. The suggestion to move Gomez more centrally is an interesting one, and one that many Liverpool fans have been calling for all season. Despite his impressive performances on the right, Gomez does look like a centre-back by trade, and a partnership with Van Dijk could prove fruitful for Klopp. However, it remains unlikely that he will make that move, with Gomez holding down the right side so well and Matip showing good consistency in the middle.