Robbie Fowler has offered his take on why Liverpool are not defending as well as last season and he believes it could be down to the loss of one of the club’s key players.
Liverpool have the eighth worst defence in the Premier League this season in relation to goals conceded, which is in stark contrast to Arne Slot’s first campaign at Anfield.
Only Arsenal recorded a better defensive record than the Reds last season, but recently it has been a very different story.
Liverpool only have a +1 goal difference after 11 league matches, having finished with a +45 goal difference back in May.
Ibrahima Konate has faced criticism for his displays and the absence of Alisson Becker has clearly been felt. However, ex-Liverpool forward Robbie Fowler has suggested Trent Alexander-Arnold’s move to Real Madrid has been a cause for his old teams’ problems.
He told Amazon Prime Video Sport: “I think it’s obviously a disappointment with a lot of Liverpool fans, the way Trent left. I don’t think anyone will deny the fact he is an absolute superstar in this football club for what he’s done and what he achieved.
“He’s an exceptional player for Liverpool, he’s still an exceptional player and maybe the fact is that Liverpool is defensively not as solid as they were, maybe that could play a part in it – Trent’s not there.”
Alexander-Arnold was a fan favourite when he played for Liverpool, but this was largely due to his versatility and the attacking threat he posed from the full-back position, rather than his defending.
Despite this, Fowler has questioned whether the player’s critics were actually wrong to take aim at his defending, considering the way things have fallen apart at Liverpool.
“But maybe he was better defensively than what we all give him credit for, but he’s a wonderful player,” Fowler continued.
Alexander-Arnold has only made two starts in La Liga for Real Madrid, although he has come off the bench on three more occasions. He did not keep a clean sheet in either of the matches he started.
