Retired Liverpool skipper, Jamie Carragher says he would go for Spanish no. 1 David De Gea if given the opportunity to sign a goalie for the Reds.
Reacting to Liverpool’s abject collapse against Bournemouth on Sunday – from being 3-1 up to losing 4-3 within the final fifteen minutes – the former skipper feels although his beloved team’s problems are multi-faceted, current keeper Lloris Karius shares a huge junk of the blame.
Of the top eight teams on the Premier League standing, Jurgen Klopps’ side have the ugly record of conceding the most – a worrying trend and anomaly they must correct should they wish to maintain the tempo of this season’s blistering start.
The Reds had an amazing run between August and November winning 9 out of 14 matches with away wins at Arsenal and Chelsea on their way to the league’s summit. Recent turn of events most notably Coutinho’s – their beacon of hope – injury has made the former Borrusia Dortmund’s coach’s carefully shaped wheel to start falling apart, most notably their attack and they now sit at 3rd on the league standings. With the Brazilian sidelined, the Red’s plan will be to do as much as possible to sustain their Champions League spot until he returns.
De Gea initially struggled to assert himself as United’s number one – almost losing a starting berth to Preston North’s Anders Lindegaard who was then occupying the back-up goalkeeper’s position at Old Trafford. With subsequent chances and an assuring an I-got-your-back stance from Coach Sir Alex Ferguson, the Spaniard gradually found his feet and built his confidence between the sticks.
Many pundits today, opine that De Gea is the best at what he does. His achievements since leaving Atletico Madrid for United have earned him a place as La Roja’s first choice goalkeeper ahead of the likes of Porto’s Iker Casillas and former Liverpool’s Pepe Reina.