[article]It would have been poetic justice had Dejan Lovren’s final game for Liverpool been against Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League final. Spurs, after all, provided the Croat with his worst day in a Liverpool shirt. Instead, the centre back watched his team’s 2-0 victory from the bench in Madrid. He is a long way down Jurgen Klopp’s pecking order.
A move to AC Milan could be an attractive option for all parties. If the Serie A club meet the asking price of £25 million (US$31.7 million) Liverpool will have no compunction in selling. Lovren will be 30 next month and in his four years at Anfield has never put together a run of 10 successive starts for the team.
The low point for the £20 million buy from Southampton came two years ago at Wembley in a 4-1 Premier League rout by Mauricio Pochettino’s team. Lovren was withdrawn by Klopp after 31 minutes after a horrendous first half-hour. Liverpool were only 2-1 down at that point but could have conceded five. The chaos was not all down to the centre back but his lack of leadership, flawed positional sense and his tendency to unravel after making a mistake made him the most obvious scapegoat. It was something of a surprise that he played any part in Klopp’s plans after that match. Many players would have struggled to come back from that experience.
Now he is fourth choice central defender. Virgil van Dijk exudes the authority Lovren lacks. Joel Matip is more consistent and has a better capacity to put errors behind him during the game. Joe Gomez has pace and the ability to distribute the ball. If the 22-year-old can prove his fitness he will partner Van Dijk for the foreseeable future.
It means Lovren is likely to move. There will be many regrets about his time at Anfield, however.
In his single season at St Mary’s – under the managership of Pochettino – Lovren looked like a man who could solve Liverpool’s defensive problems. He was part of a hardworking defensive triangle with Jose Fonte alongside him and Morgan Schneiderlin operating in front of the pair to form a solid unit. Lovren looked ready to take a step up in class.
Instead he found chaos and confusion at Anfield. Brendan Rodgers was still in charge and even though Liverpool had come second to Manchester City in the previous campaign they were in disarray. Luis Suarez had forced through a summer move to Barcelona and the cast of replacements were second-rate. Some were risible – Mario Balotelli, Lazar Markovic, Rickie Lambert and Alberto Moreno. Adam Lallana and Emre Can were just about passable. Divock Origi salvaged his reputation with big goals last season but has never been good enough. Lovren seemed well set to be the best of a very ordinary bunch. He never quite managed that
The defence was in a shocking state. There was little confidence in Simon Mignolet in goal. Lovren’s potential central partners all had huge flaws. Kolo Toure, at 34, was brought in to provide leadership but did not have the personality to carry a defence, never mind a team. Mamadou Sakho was a masterpiece of wishful thinking; a defender who caused a ripple of panic in the dugout whenever the ball came near. Martin Skrtel was over 30, past his best and out of favour with Rodgers. To make things worse, Moreno was deployed at left back. It did not need a tactical genius to work out that Liverpool were vulnerable in this area and attackers could get a free run at the centre backs when the Spaniard went walkabout.
Yet what shocked Lovren most was the lack of screening that came from the midfield. In particular, Steven Gerrard did little to help out the beleaguered defenders. The captain was 35 and nearing the end of his glorious career. Rodgers had used him in a deep midfield role in the previous season not because he thought Gerrard would excel in the position but because the manager thought him undroppable. It was a surprise to the Northern Irishman that Gerrard became almost as influential as Suarez in the title challenge.
Right from the start, Lovren appeared out of his depth in an incoherent team. Liverpool finished sixth in the league, just two points ahead of Southampton. Rodgers never got to grips with the defence and when he was sacked three years ago Klopp inherited a side that needed a significant overhaul.
There are many reasons to praise the German but, in 2015, he was too slow to recognise the inadequacy of the squad. Especially in the defensive areas, players were allowed to make the same blunders over and over. Van Dijk’s signing changed things. The Dutchman made the sort of difference that the club hoped Lovren would make four years ago. Alisson Becker’s arrival gave the entire back four a sense of security. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson have had a huge impact, too. Matip’s game was elevated by having good players alongside him. Lovren did not show much sign of improvement.
If he leaves it will be with a Champions League medal but there is a sense that he never really made a proper mark at Anfield. He could – and should – have been so much better.[/article]