After failing to really get going during his first season at the club, it is fair to say that many Liverpool supporters are yet to be won over by Jeremie Frimpong.
The Dutchman was seen as an exciting signing after being the first through the door last summer, and he immediately endeared himself to fans with a touching moment between him and his dad, a lifelong Liverpool supporter.
However, injuries soon disrupted Frimpong‘s flow, and when he has played, he has often looked suspect. Loose and at times clumsy with the ball, the 25-year-old has occasionally appeared not to be at the level expected.
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Heading into the summer, there are real question marks over Frimpong and his position in the Liverpool squad. Though there is no danger he will be sold, he really needs a big second season at Anfield.
For that, he has to get supporters on side. Sadly, being seen doing some pre-season training while wearing an Aston Villa shirt is not the way for Frimpong to do that.
Frimpong needs to cut out the nonsense
Some supporters will have no problem at all with Frimpong wearing the shirt of another club while away from Liverpool this summer. He is clearly committed to the cause at Anfield and is not agitating for a move away or anything like that. So, why should this matter?
Well, in short, the Netherlands international does not have the goodwill in the bank to be sporting the shirt of a team who finished above Liverpool last season.
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Yes, he is wearing the name of Emi Buendia on the back – his teammate for a season at Bayer Leverkusen – but that is largely irrelevant.
Had the Reds won it all last season with Frimpong as one of the star men, this would not – and should not – matter. But the opposite is true, and that is why it does rankle.
Many of the Liverpool squad have shown themselves to be tone-deaf during the struggles of the last year or so, and that definitely stretches to Frimpong.
It is not his fault especially, that is the way football has gone, and it is not as though Liverpool have a rivalry to speak of with Villa. Nevertheless, an occasional reading of the room would be a good trait for these Reds players to have, and there will be no more patience with Frimpong next season.
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There was a real opportunity for Frimpong to make himself Liverpool’s starting right-back last season.
Though he was not necessarily signed to be a full-back, the former Leverkusen man was the only option left standing after Conor Bradley sustained a long-term injury in January.
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That he couldn’t take advantage was not really Frimpong’s fault, but it does mean that Liverpool should definitely be looking for a right-back this summer.
Whether they sign one or not, though, Frimpong is under pressure to show what he can bring to the table under Andoni Iraola.
Quick, aggressive and very much an attacking full-back, he could have exactly what Iraola is looking for in a right-back. That could be the reason Liverpool have not yet dipped into the transfer market. Maybe the Basque sees Frimpong as his best option there.
If that is not the case, though, it is hard to see exactly how the former Man City youngster can force his way in. Unless he can do something big and exciting early into the season and establish himself from the get-go, it feels like it could be another campaign of drifting for Frimpong.
That, coupled with the undue pressure he has put on himself, make these next six months absolutely huge in the context of his Liverpool career.
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