Liverpool were beaten 2-1 by Manchester United in their Premier League clash on Sunday, with Giorgi Mamardashvili’s performance way below his usual standards.
Going into the game, many expected Liverpool to be the ones to come out on top despite their recent run of poor form.
And, even though Cody Gakpo finally managed to get one of his shots into the back of the net to bring the game level, Harry Maguire ended up heading home the winner in the 84th minute.
Although the first goal that the Reds conceded was likely down to Virgil van Dijk elbowing Alexis Mac Allister in the back of the head, Mamardashvili wasn’t completely innocent.
The Georgian ‘keeper is filling in for Alisson at the moment since the Brazilian has been injured again.
Although there have been moments when he’s impressed, Sunday’s clash wasn’t one of them, with Ben Foster slamming the goalkeeper for his role in Bryan Mbeumo’s opener.
Ben Foster shares that Giorgi Mamardashvili’s performance “really disappointed” him on Sunday
Whenever Liverpool face Man United, it’s always one of the most anticipated games of the season.
Both teams bring their A-game to the clash, with the Red Devils seeming to unlock an entirely new level of performance when playing their arch-rivals.
And, although the Reds have often got the better of United, Sunday wasn’t their day, with Foster now saying that Mamardashvili looked like he was in “no man’s land” for Mbeumo’s goal.
“The first one I was really disappointed. He’s got dragged into that space there. He’s in no man’s land because it’s you’ve not got much space to operate in there, right,” he said on the Cycling GK YouTube Channel.
“And he can’t go and affect the ball first and foremost because from you can tell he’s just getting it onto that right foot and he’s shooting.
“What he’s done though is he’s closed that space, closed his reaction time off to he’s basically just got to hope it hits him.
“Whereas if he would have just stayed where he was, he could have reacted to that, you know, and that there is that bit of not playing, isn’t it? Yeah, that’s when you start to do things like that.”
Liverpool need Alisson to come back as soon as possible
Although there have been times this season when Mamardashvili has proven that he can hold his own, his performance against Man United was far from ideal.
Alisson is undoubtedly the better goalkeeper of the two, and his injury is likely to continue causing Liverpool several problems.
Last term, the Reds had Caoimhin Kelleher to fall back on when the Brazilian was out, and even though he exited Anfield to get a regular starting role with Brentford, it feels like he would’ve been a better option than Mamardashvili.
Indeed, the Georgian is still young and will have plenty to learn as time goes on, but the sooner Alisson gets back, the better it’ll likely be for Liverpool.
It’s unclear when the former Roma man will be able to return to action, but the sooner it happens, the better it’ll likely be for Slot’s first-team squad.
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