The decision to sign Benfica and Uruguay striker Darwin Núñez, as well as a number of other decisions, could cost Jürgen Klopp his job at Liverpool.
That is according to pundit Gabriel Agbonlahor, who was speaking to Football Insider about his thoughts on the situation at Anfield.
Liverpool signed Núñez in a deal which could rise to £85m in add-ons, with the club losing the services of long-time forward Sadio Mané, who moved to Bayern Munich in a £35m move this summer.
However, life on Merseyside hasn’t got off to the best of starts for the 23-year-old, with the striker scoring just two goals and providing one assist in eight appearances according to Transfermarkt, whilst receiving a silly red-card in a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace earlier this season.
Klopp has entered his seventh season at Anfield, and Agbonlahor suggests that there are signs of a decline which is reminiscent of the German manager’s seventh and final season at Borussia Dortmund in the 2014/15 season.
And the former Aston Villa striker believes that the situation with Núñez has been so much of a failure, that this could be the beginning of the end of Klopp’s time on Merseyside, as well as some of his team news calls.
“Jurgen Klopp was at Dortmund for seven years and in the seventh year, it was poor,” Agbonlahor told Football Insider.
“This is his seventh year at Liverpool. He’s got a history of having six years and then it not working out.
“This Liverpool team are in real danger of not finishing in the top-four, the title race has gone.
“For me, it’s been some of his decisions. Starting Carvalho against Brighton. Yes, he’s a good prospect but start your best side and bring players off.
“I don’t care if they’ve been on international duty, I don’t care if they have been on a plane from South America, they are not flying RyanAir, they’re on private jets with beds on.
“I don’t want to hear ‘I didn’t start Nunez because of this, I didn’t start Diaz because of the international break’. That’s a load of nonsense.
“Don’t underestimate some of the teams in the Premier League and he did that. If he had started Diaz then they would have won the game, for me.
“Some of his decision-making too. I love James Milner but you’re bringing him on for Tsimikas. Jordan Henderson was playing some great balls and he brought him off for Elliott.
“I think some of his decisions aren’t right and maybe there’s a problem with Klopp.
“Liverpool are on the decline, for me. Everyone can see it. Teams aren’t scared to play them anymore.
“We talk about the atmosphere at Anfield, it doesn’t look the same there. There’s something definitely wrong there.
“This is what happens when you don’t buy players in the position you really need.
“Would the Nunez money have been better spent on a midfielder? They are very light in midfield, Fabinho can’t run and Thiago is a decent player but he can’t run.
“The midfield is going to cost them this season.”
TIF Thoughts on Agbonlahor’s comments
We agree with Agbonlahor and believe that the funds spent on Núñez should perhaps have been prioritised on bringing in a top-class midfielder, but we do think it is too early to write off the 13-time Uruguay striker straight away. He’s spent a period out of the side due to the red card he received and did manage to net against Arsenal earlier on today which should silence some critics.
The 6 foot 2 striker scored goals on a regular basis in Portugal last season, having scored 34 goals and provided four assists in 41 games according to Transfermarkt, suggesting that with a small adaptation period, the centre-forward could become a feared presence in the Premier League.
However, we do feel that the Reds needed to work on improving an ageing midfield, and that this season Klopp is falling short due to the club’s lack of world-class options in the middle of the park.