Victory in the Merseyside derby appears to have been a false dawn, with Liverpool’s late-season decline very much still here after an error-strewn display saw Fulham claim victory over Arne Slot in the Premier League.
It was actually the first time that Liverpool and Slot had tasted defeat on the road in this term’s top flight, but stepping into the bracing summer air feels a distance away yet, for Fulham benefitted from some elementary defensive mistakes from the away side’s experienced and successful defenders.
Virgil van Dijk’s concerning but perhaps overblown dip in form continued, rarely at ease against the Londoners’ frontline and notably turned inside out by a Bergkamp-esque touch from Rodrigo Muniz, who proved to seal the win by scoring Fulham’s decisive third goal before the break.
However, Van Dijk, 33, is still one of the – if not the – best centre-backs in Europe; tying Liverpool’s captain down to one final contract is crucial.
The same can’t be said for Andrew Robertson, whose unwavering belief in his ability is admirable, but not enough given errors and a startling drop in athleticism and creativity have put his performances under a microscope this year.
Why Andy Robertson needs to be replaced
Robertson joined Liverpool way back when. Hull City’s talented full-back couldn’t save the Tigers from relegation in 2016/17, and so Jurgen Klopp saw an opportunity, swooped in and snapped him up for a cool £8m fee.
Now, he’s entering the twilight stage of his trophy-adorned career. Aged 31, Robertson has spent many years playing expertly in a high-octane, big-expectation outfit, but he’s past his best, with the defeat at Fulham the latest game in which he’s been culpable for a “dreadful error,” as was remarked by The Athletic’s James Pearce.
The Scotland captain also ceded possession on 12 occasions despite failing to complete a single key pass to help Liverpool’s attacking fluency, as per Sofascore.
It would be unfair to rebuke Robertson too harshly. He might be something of a weak link but he’s still been an important part of Liverpool’s campaign and is heading toward his second Premier League title.
But he needs replacing, for sure.
Plans have been mapped out already, it seems like Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez is one of FSG’s most pressing transfer targets ahead of the summer window.
However, Robertson’s not the only player who showed in the capital that they need to be sold, with a ‘world-class’ star potentially having played his last.
Liverpool need to sell "world-class" star
Replacing Robertson would be for the greater good of Slot’s project, but there are one or two more regular starters on Merseyside who might also be cashed in this summer.
Caoimhin Kelleher being one of them. The goalkeeper has been brilliant as Liverpool’s back-up between the sticks, featuring 67 times in total for the first team, but his unconvincing performance against Fulham underscored the reasoning behind FSG’s decision to allow him to move away, to sign a replacement.
Fulham put three past their opponents at the weekend despite only accumulating an xG total of just 0.79, which basically means that Liverpool should really have prevented two, if not all three, of the strikes.
It’s becoming clear that Kelleher needs to be sold, having risen from Liverpool’s academy graduate to achieve a sort of cult status, so instrumental in winning domestic cups over the past few seasons.
Praised as a “world-class” shot-stopper by his skipper, Van Dijk, Kelleher cannot abide another campaign playing second fiddle and fair enough to him. A swarm of clubs were intrigued in signing the £35m-rated star last year, but he ultimately stayed put.
However, the Irishman has pulled no punches in expressing his desire to take the next step in his career and “leave and be a number one.”
However, he’s hardly failed to earn any attention at Anfield. Slot, to whom Alisson is “the best goalkeeper in the world,” has been forced to make do without his number one on many occasions this season. In fact, the 26-year-old’s skills have been called into play regularly over the past couple of years.
24/25
20
9
23/24
26
5
22/23
4
2
21/22
8
4
20/21
5
2
19/20
4
2
With Alisson unable to shake persistent injury problems, Kelleher has featured 46 times since the start of last season. His Brazilian counterpart has featured 60 times over the same period.
The Liverpool Echo certainly weren’t impressed, handing Kelleher a 5/10 match rating. While correspondent Ian Doyle noted that the Ireland international could do little about Ryan Sessegnon’s parity-restoring strike, there’s a case to be made that the following strikes could have been prevented, albeit with Iwobi’s shot taking a nicking deflection off the guilty Robertson.
With Giorgi Mamardashvili set to arrive from Valencia in the summer, it makes perfect sense to bank a fee for Kelleher before his deal expires in 2026.
Especially when the Georgian goalkeeper, still only 24, is putting in performances like that of last weekend, when Real Madrid was foiled in their own backyard.
Football is a fickle game and revisionism must be ignored as Liverpool enter this final stretch of the campaign a little sapped and disjointed.
If anything, such a dip would have told Slot more about his tools than the hitherto strength that allowed him to carve through so many of his club’s opponents for the lion’s share of the season.
Liverpool have suffered a few blots on the copybook of late, but make no mistake, this is an extraordinary feat acheived down Anfield Road. The Reds are heading toward the Premier League title, but change is sure to be afoot in the market this summer.
In west London, Kelleher, like Robertson, may well have shown why he needs to be sold this summer.
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2 ByEthan Lamb