Liverpool have been urged by pundit Frank McAvennie to sign a new centre-back during the upcoming summer transfer window.
While a lot has been made about Liverpool needing to refresh their midfield this summer, especially given how they have James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain out of contract, one pundit has highlighted another area of Jurgen Klopp’s squad that they should look to strengthen.
Speaking to Football Insider, McAvennie said this about the upcoming summer transfer period and what Liverpool should look to do in it.
He said: “They need another top drawer centre-half to go with [Virgil] Van Dijk. The boys around him, the likes of [Joe] Gomez, are doing alright. But they need that consistency and that is what top centre-halves give you.
“I think these boys are alright for two games and then they start daydreaming. If Van Dijk gets injured you saw what happened they were all over the place. I think they need that.”
With 26 Premier League games played, the Reds have conceded 29 goals, leaving four clubs in the division having conceded fewer.
As McAvennie mentioned Van Dijk, out of the three league games he missed through injury earlier this season, Liverpool conceded six goals in total, which shows how much they missed him throughout that period.
Do Liverpool need to sign a new centre-back this summer?
Yes
No
As for the Merseyside club’s other centre-back options, Joel Matip (3), Ibrahima Konate (2) and Gomez (2) have racked up a combined total of seven errors that have led to an opponent having a shot at goal this season in the league.
This shows why McAvennie thinks Liverpool could do with another higher-quality centre-back to be a permanent partner for Van Dijk to make the team more solid at the back.
In terms of who the club could get in the summer that would fit the bill, one figure they’ve been linked with is RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol, who has made fewer errors (1) that have led to an opponent having a shot at goal in the Bundesliga this season than Matip, Konate and Gomez.