Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones simply isn’t good enough to play for the club right now.
That’s the view of pundit Gabby Agbonlahor. Speaking to The Mirror, the former England striker claimed that Jones isn’t up to the standard of playing for a top team.
“You bring in Curtis Jones into the team, he’s not good enough for me for where Liverpool want to go, he’s not really taking his chance in midfield,” Agbonlahor suggested.
The pundit, who has taken aim at Jurgen Klopp plenty of times already this season, also stated his belief that the legs of Liverpool three regular midfield starters have ‘gone.’
“Henderson’s legs, Fabinho’s legs, Thiago’s legs have all gone,” he said. “When you play how Liverpool play, you need players to be younger or have more speed, more legs.”
With things not looking like getting moving in the transfer market, the Reds will have to stick with what they’ve got for now.
Liverpool still looking for more from Jones
Without getting into whether or not Liverpool’s midfield needs more legs, let’s focus on what Agbonlahor says about Jones.
Will the 21-year-old ever be good enough to play regularly for his hometown club? Right now, you’d unfortunately have to agree that he probably won’t be.
Curtis has shown plenty of promise over his 84 games for Liverpool so far. To reach such a figure in such a good team is testament to his talent in itself.
But in all honesty, he just hasn’t shown quite enough. Injuries haven’t helped, it must be said. When you watch him play though, there is all too often a nagging sense that he just hasn’t developed from the 17-year-old we saw come through the academy.
Of course, he shouldn’t be written off. There’s no shame in settling into a squad role at Anfield, and he’s surely good enough for that. But just a few days shy of turning twenty-two, he needs to take big steps over the coming months to show that he can play a more significant part.
From what we’ve seen over recent times, that doesn’t look like happening. As much as we hate to say it, we may have to agree with Agbonlahor here. Prove us wrong, Curtis.
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