“Get a holding midfielder,” former Manchester United defender Gary Neville says to Liverpool as they look to challenge for the 2023/24 Premier League title.
The Reds are back and better, and have put the ghosts of last season behind them. They are currently fourth on the log and only Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur stand in their way.
Many believe that Liverpool have what it takes to challenge these teams and so does Gary Neville, who enjoyed a fierce rivalry with the club while he played for – and captained – Manchester United. However, Neville, who now works full time as a pundit and football broadcaster, believes that Liverpool are missing a holding midfielder to complete their title-challenge squad.
“They’ve got an outstanding goalkeeper that I always think will keep them in a lot of football matches and they’ve got strikers that can score goals and lots of them,” Neville said.
“They’ve got a good forward line. The midfield it’s attacking, but has it got the defensive ability of what we’ve seen here today when Rodri comes back in and when you see Rice, Partey and Jorginho?”
“Have they got that defensive stability? If you put Declan Rice in holding midfield or you put Rodri in there, I would be saying Liverpool would definitely be on for the title.”
“My question mark is whether they’ve got enough solidity in midfield, enough defensive strength and power?”
“I don’t think Liverpool will quite get there but they’re in the race there is no doubt because of their manager.”
“The manager is absolutely outstanding, he’s one of the best but I think it will be Arsenal and City again coming towards the end.”
Liverpool lost Fabinho in the summer to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad. The Brazilian held down the role for five seasons before leaving Anfield. As a replacement, they have brought in Wataru Endo from Stuttgart in the German Bundesliga.
The Japan international is taking some time to adapt, however, and many believe that the Reds cannot wait that long. His age is also an issue as he is 30, which means he is not a long-term solution to their problem of a holding midfielder.
It remains to be seen what Jürgen Klopp and the club’s transfer team will do in the coming transfer window as Neville’s advice is a solid one.
