Reds legend Jamie Carragher has claimed the careers of two Liverpool players have been disappointments.
Writing in his column for The Telegraph, the Sky Sports pundit has suggested the tenures of Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at Anfield have been really underwhelming.
Speaking of Liverpool’s midfield situation, Carragher wrote: “Jordan Henderson has been a fantastic servant, but at 32 there was always a possibility the burden of recent years would take its toll. The same is true of Fabinho, who is approaching his 30th birthday.
“Thiago Alcantara is a class player but often injured. James Milner, now 37, was out of contract last summer, but signed for another season.
“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Keita are in the final year of their deals after disappointing Liverpool careers.
“This makes the idea that the club has suddenly realised they need three midfielders rather than one misleading. Had Tchouaméni chosen Liverpool over Madrid a year ago, Klopp would still have had to replace Oxlade-Chamberlain, Keita and Milner this summer.”
Keita and Ox set to leave Liverpool
At the end of the season, both Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain will leave the club as free agents.
Despite signs of promise, severe injury records have led Liverpool to believe neither player has done enough to earn a new contract. As a result, the two midfielders will leave upon the expiry of their current deals, which will take place over the summer.
Keita joined the Reds in 2018 in a huge deal worth £52.75m, whereas Oxlade-Chamberlain made the move a year prior for £40m.
During his five years at the club, the Guinea international has made just 129 appearances for the Reds. More worryingly, only 77 of these came from the starting XI.
Despite the extra year, the former England international has only made 146 appearances for the club, with only 70 of his coming from the initial line-up.
It would be unfair to say neither midfielder has shown any promise at Liverpool – both certainly have.
However, their Anfield careers have been plagued by various injuries, which is probably how they’ll be remembered on Merseyside.