Liverpool drew 2-2 away at Merseyside rivals Everton on Saturday afternoon, but that doesn’t even begin to tell the story of a game that has caused anger in the red half of the city.
Richarlison’s reckless tackle on Thiago received a red card and has given the Spaniard an injury, whilst Jordan Henderson’s last-gasp winner was harshly ruled out for a marginal offside.
The biggest issue surrounds Virgil van Dijk’s injury, as Jordan Pickford’s rash challenge on the Dutchman went unpunished due to an offside in the build-up.
Van Dijk now looks to be out for the season, as Liverpool have confirmed that he has suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage, which will be tough to return from this term.
Losing Van Dijk would be a nightmare in any situation, as he is undoubtedly one of the best centre backs in the world and has been the leader of the Liverpool defence for almost three years now.
The situation is made even worse though by the fact that Liverpool sold Dejan Lovren over the summer and chose not to replace him, instead viewing Fabinho as emergency cover if needed. Is Lovren a world-beater? Not particularly, despite his own claims, but he at least has major Premier League experience, which the likes of Sepp van den Berg, Rhys Williams and Billy Koumetio don’t possess.
It’s all down to Joe Gomez and Joel Matip to lead the Liverpool back line, though Matip himself now has a knock, which means Liverpool fans are looking for the club to sign a free agent as a short-term solution to this new defensive crisis.
A look at the available free agents seems a little bleak though. Ex-Celtic man Jozo Simunovic won’t exactly set pulses racing, but a number of fans have picked out Ezequiel Garay as a potential option.
Garay, 34, is a free agent having left Valencia at the end of last season, and is almost back from a similar knee injury to Van Dijk.. He has experience at some huge clubs, such as Real Madrid, Benfica and Zenit St Petersburg, as well as picking up 32 appearances for Argentina along the way.
That experience could come in handy, and Garay has won two league titles in his career, but the main concern would be surrounding a lack of pace to play in Liverpool’s system.
Jurgen Klopp tends to deploy a very high line, one which has been exposed at times this season even with the pace of Gomez and Van Dijk, so it’s hard to imagine that an ageing Garay would fare any better.
Still, Liverpool fans have been taking to Twitter to suggest a move for Garay in light of Van Dijk and Matip’s injury concerns, believing that he can offer some short-term relief whilst coming in without a transfer fee – though squad registration issues could be a problem.
Some noted that Garay has the same agent as Diogo Jota and Fabinho given that he is represented by Jorge Mendes, and feel that his experience could be vital as Liverpool scramble for defensive help.
