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Gary Neville believes Liverpool’s summer business has left Andoni Iraola dangerously short in key defensive areas, despite another expensive recruitment drive at Anfield.
Neville Questions Liverpool’s Priorities
Gary Neville has taken aim at Liverpool’s recruitment strategy, arguing that the club has focused too heavily on attacking talent while failing to fix obvious weaknesses elsewhere in the squad.
Liverpool have opened the Premier League season with successive 2-2 draws against Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest, with their defensive vulnerability already becoming a talking point.
Neville believes the problem goes beyond a couple of early-season mistakes. The former Manchester United defender says Liverpool still need reinforcements at both full-back positions and in defensive midfield, warning that Iraola could pay the price if those areas remain untouched before the transfer deadline.
Liverpool have already spent heavily, including the arrival of Jeremy Jacquet from Rennes and a loan move for Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo. Bradley Barcola is also expected to arrive from Paris Saint-Germain, while Victor Munoz joined from Osasuna earlier in the window.
For Neville, though, the balance of the squad still looks wrong.
Frimpong And Kerkez Come Under Fire
Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez were the main targets of Neville’s criticism.
He argued that both players appear better suited to wing-back roles in a five-man defensive system than conventional full-back positions in a back four. That creates a problem if Iraola intends to stick with his current shape.
Frimpong’s defending against Nottingham Forest drew particular scrutiny. Neville questioned his positioning and defensive instincts, even suggesting Trent Alexander-Arnold, regularly criticised for his own defending during his Liverpool career, was a stronger one-on-one defender.
Kerkez has also struggled to settle, according to Neville, despite his quality and reputation.
The concern for Liverpool is fairly simple: adventurous full-backs can be a weapon when the team controls games, but they can turn into an open invitation when opponents break quickly.
For anyone assessing Liverpool from a betting perspective, that defensive uncertainty is worth watching. The Reds may have plenty of firepower, but their first two league matches have already produced eight combined goals.
Gakpo Sale Makes Even Less Sense To Neville
Neville was equally puzzled by the possibility of Cody Gakpo leaving Anfield.
Manchester City have been linked with an £85 million move for the Dutch forward, despite Gakpo remaining one of Liverpool’s most reliable attacking threats. Neville described him as a player whose contribution can sometimes be overlooked, pointing to his involvement, work rate and ability to deliver goals and assists.
With Barcola close to joining, Liverpool may feel they have enough attacking options to sanction a sale. Neville sees it differently.
Selling a productive forward to one of your main domestic rivals is risky enough. Doing it while still carrying obvious weaknesses elsewhere makes the decision even harder to understand.
Iraola May Want More Before The Deadline
Neville believes Iraola should be pushing Liverpool’s hierarchy for immediate reinforcements.
His preferred shopping list is straightforward: a defensive midfielder and two defensively reliable full-backs. Add those pieces, he believes, and Liverpool would have the squad to mount a serious challenge.
Fail to do so and Iraola could spend much of the season trying to compensate tactically for holes that recruitment should have filled.
Liverpool’s attacking options give them the ability to hurt almost anyone. The bigger question is whether they can stop opponents doing the same at the other end.
With the transfer window closing quickly, Iraola and Liverpool’s recruitment team do not have much time left to find an answer.
