Liverpool: 5 players for Jurgen Klopp to sell this summer
4. Dejan Lovren
With Liverpool having apparently rejected a bid last summer from AS Roma in the hopes of securing a higher transfer fee, it appears Lovren’s departure is more a case of when not if.
Having paid £20m for “one of the best defenders in the world,” back in 2014, Lovren has endured a mixture of highs and lows.
A particular high of note includes scoring the winning goal in a 4-3 Europa League quarter-final against Borussia Dortmund.
Also, over the past two seasons, Lovren has moved to appear most frequently as a substitute. His ability to effectively fill in for the likes of Matip and Gomez, whilst they were sidelined with injuries, cannot be understated.
However, Lovren is often made the scape-goat amongst Liverpool fans for any defensive frailties since his arrival – hence why he’s gone from starting every game to appearing as a sub.
Having scored just 5 in 130 league appearances, he failed to become the commanding centre-back he was touted to be when he joined Liverpool all those years ago.
However, despite his harshest critics, he has in fact managed to garner a 56% win ratio (W:104 D:41 L:39). Compare him side-by-side with Van Dijk, though, and the sheer gulf in class and stature become apparent – a win ratio of 73% (W:83 D:13 L:17).
On the other hand, “the game isn’t played on paper,” as the saying goes and it’s the intangible factors that often determine a player’s ability more than their statistics.
As Lovren paired with Van Dijk still leaves Liverpool fans concerned about potential defensive frailties, the crowd at the game will always remain uneasy.
It’s in these instances that the hush tones and concerned shouts from the stands can take a negative toll on a player’s in-game performance – having witnessed this first-hand myself at Anfield.
Therefore, it seems apparent that the Croatian’s time at Anfield is well and truly up, 6 years on from his arrival.
The fact that Liverpool stand firm in their belief that they can recoup every penny from their initial investment, however, says a lot about Lovren’s actual ability, even if he doesn’t quite fit into Klopp’s specific plans.