Jamie Carragher saw one ‘unforgivable’ thing on display at Liverpool as they lost 2-1 to Manchester United. The ex-Red thinks it’s now a worry for Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool were terrible at Old Trafford on Monday night. They lost 2-1 to Manchester United but honestly, they were lucky it was that close. They had United looking like a dynamic team, in fact, in comparison to a very sluggish Reds side.
There were defensive errors, a void in midfield, and struggles to get the forwards into the game. But above all, says Jamie Carragher, one problem stood out.
“The disappointment for me is that Liverpool weren’t ready for a derby game,” he told Sky Sports. “That, for me, is unforgivable. I absolutely love this team and what they’ve done over the last four or five years and you can very rarely throw that at them.
“But in the first three league games, it’s happened twice that they don’t look ready for a game. That’s something that I think will be worrying Jurgen Klopp right now.”
Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool
As Carragher points out, this wasn’t the first time Liverpool started slowly. They also struggled to get into the game against Fulham on the opening day, but there’s another sign that slow starts are a big problem.
This is now seven straight games in which Liverpool conceded the first goal. That’s a pattern, not a coincidence. For whatever reason, the Reds can’t keep things are controlled as they used to.
Even a good start against Crystal Palace couldn’t stop it. Palace found a way through to goal before Liverpool could, even with the Reds dominating the territory.
And so Klopp will be worried. Liverpool look sluggish, a little lost, and the control isn’t there. The question now becomes – how do you fix it?
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
