Liverpool have stumbled a little too often over recent weeks in the Premier League.
After the Reds could only draw at Nottingham Forest on Tuesday and then watched Arsenal beat Tottenham on Wednesday, the gap at the top of the table is now just four points.
Liverpool do still have that game in hand, of course, and nobody should be panicking just yet.
But what it means is that they can ill afford another slip when they visit Brentford on Saturday afternoon.
Ahead of that game, Arne Slot has plenty to ponder about who should be in his starting XI at the Gtech Stadium.
One position which could well see a change is at left-back, where Andy Robertson is having a tough old time at the moment. Robertson’s decline has been seen in real time this season and according to Ian Wright, it is hard to watch.
Ian Wright offers Andy Robertson sympathy
Tuesday was another bad day at the office for Robertson. Although he was better defensively against the tricky Anthony Elanga, the 30-year-old’s delivery from set-pieces was poor.
This was highlighted in the fact that Kostas Tsimikas laid the equalising goal on a plate for Diogo Jota with his first touch of the game following Robertson’s subsitutiton.
In our opinion, it was a moment which underlined that Tsimikas should be Liverpool’s first choice left-back moving forward this season.
That is also a view likely held by Jamie Carragher. Carragher has called for help for Robertson a few times this season and speaking to The Overlap on Thursday, he again reiterated that the Scotland captain is finding things ‘tough.’
“Defensively we’re [Liverpool] not great in the full-back areas,” says Carragher.
“Trent’s that type of player, we know that. You can get in behind him but he gives you the other stuff. Andy Robertson’s finding it tough at the moment.”
“I hate seeing that,” interjecting an upset-looking Wright. “Because when you love a player, I hate seeing it.”
“I know,” Carragher responded. “We’ve all been there as players and he’s going through that right now.”
No need to go overboard on Robertson
Although it is fairly clear that Robertson is in a difficult moment, there is no need to throw the baby out with the bath water here.
Just because the veteran full-back should no longer be considered a regular starter for Liverpool, it by no stretch means that his career at the club is over.
Slot needs to get some help for Robertson and that will likely come via a new signing in 2025. However, with his contract still valid until 2026, he should be kept around as a more than able back-up.
Robertson is a top personality to have around and a bona fide Liverpool legend. It is a shame to see how things are going for him this season, but he has still been a big part of a team which sits top of the table and that is worth remembering, too.
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