Liverpool were strung and scarred after failing to sign a new centre-back in the summer of 2020.
Fortunately, the emergence of Jarell Quansah has helped ensure history does not repeat itself this season, with the academy graduate providing back-up to a senior quota that is made up of Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip, and Joe Gomez.
With all five available for action, in truth it is a stark contrast to three years ago when Liverpool failed to bring in a replacement for Dejan Lovren following his £12m move to Zenit St. Petersburg. Instead, Fabinho and Jordan Henderson were asked to step up as Van Dijk, Gomez, and Matip were one by one stuck down by season-ending injuries, before Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies were signed on loan and Jurgen Klopp eventually settled on an unorthodox pairing of Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams.
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When the latter two stepped up, it was pretty clear that they would not be long-term options at Anfield. Impressing in his first eight appearances for the club alongside senior options, it is a different story for Quansah.
With both Van Dijk and Matip on the wrong side of 30, with the latter out of contract next summer, there is no reason to believe that the England Under-21s international can’t cement his place in the Reds’ centre-back ranks for the foreseeable future.
But just because Quansah has stepped up to the plate, it does not mean Liverpool are not feeling the pinch from not strengthening their options in the close-season either.
“We look in all departments apart from goalkeeper at the moment,” Klopp told reporters in May. “Yes, if there is a good one (centre-back) out there, I would not deny it. That’s all. We look at all areas of the pitch, definitely.”
The Reds were linked with moves for the likes of Levi Colwill and Micky van de Ven, with a younger, left-sided centre-back the target of their desires. As well as he is playing when turned to, the right-footed Quansah is not that.
In the long-term, the necessity of such a player is to emerge as a long-term successor to Van Dijk. In the mid-term, it is to replace Matip. But in the short-term, with Liverpool continuing to implement Trent Alexander-Arnold as an inverted right-back, it would also be to provide an option as a hybrid left-back.
Andy Robertson was an uncomfortable fit in such a position when the Reds initially switched systems back in April. He really only found his feet after tweaks that saw Alexander-Arnold stay outwide or drop to centre-back instead of just stepping up into midfield, which allowed him to still attack rather than purely move in-field to form a back three.
But with the Scotland international dislocating his shoulder in the October international break, and expected to be out until the New Year after undergoing surgery, it has become easier to bemoan Liverpool’s failure to sign their desired defensive option in the summer.
In the absence of Robertson, deputy Kostas Tsimikas has looked far from convincing with the Greek even more attacking than the Scot and a far less comfortable hybrid full-back.
The 27-year-old, who signed a new long-term contract at Anfield earlier this season, was withdrawn shortly after the hour-mark in the 2-0 victory over Everton as Blues boss Sean Dyche insisted he should have at least been booked.
With Klopp insisting he could not play every game, he was then benched for Luke Chambers for the 5-1 victory over Toulouse, before returning for a 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest and surprisingly keeping his place for the 2-1 League Cup victory at AFC Bournemouth.
Gomez was then switched to left-back at Tsimikas’ expense against Luton Town last weekend, as Liverpool desperately struggled with a lack of width on the left flank as a result. Yet when the Greek was introduced in the 67th minute, he hardly provided the missing ingredients either.
And while he was back in the starting XI again against Toulouse on Thursday, it was his mistake that gifted the Ligue 1 outfit the opening goal. He was subsequently withdrawn at half-time as Gomez switched to left-back, with it unclear who will get the nod against Brentford on Sunday.
Robertson’s prolonged absence was supposed to give Tsimikas the longest run in the side of his Liverpool career, yet he has failed to grasp the opportunity so far. Were Gomez naturally left-sided or Chambers enjoying the same impact as Quansah after stepping up from the Academy, the Greek’s audition would already have failed.
When Robertson returns from injury, he will surely be restored as first-choice. But when the time comes for the Reds to revisit their interest in a left-sided centre-back, be it in January or beyond, Tsimikas would have every reason to feel nervous about what such a signing could mean for his own Anfield career.
Earlier this week, club sources would dismiss the possibility of Liverpool signing a new holding midfielder in January, despite ongoing speculation linking the club with Flumninense’s Andre Trindade, having signed Wataru Endo from VfB Stuttgart in the summer.
The Japan international joined the club as part of an £150m engine-room overhaul as club bosses looked to address such midfield shortcomings. But having not signed a desired new defender in the summer, it’s debatable whether the same mid-season transfer stance actually applies to the Reds’ last line of defence.
If Matip does move on next summer, they will need to sign that new defender at some point in 2024, after all.
Tsimikas will continue to get starting opportunities in the weeks ahead, of course, as Klopp continues to rotate his side. Though if he had been rising to the occasion, perhaps such rotation would not be week-by-week rather than his place in the side being so uncertain.
Admittedly, he is not helped by Liverpool wanting the best of both worlds in this new formation. A pacey left-sided defender who is strong offensively, both running down the wing and getting crosses into the box, but also one defensively solid and aware enough to stay solid in a defensive back three. Even when Robertson was fit, it was not perfect.
But with a return for the Scot and the January transfer window on the horizon, it is time for the deputy left-back to justify being handed that new long-term contract. After an unconvincing campaign so far, it’s sink or swim time for Tsimikas as he is left playing for a long-term Liverpool future.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
