There is a bit of a centre-back crisis at Liverpool. Giovanni Leoni took Jarell Quansah's place in the team after the club sold him to Bayer Leverkusen. However, the £26 million acquisition from Parma suffered an ACL tear on his debut. Suddenly, it was even more obvious that Liverpool had failed to sign Marc Guehi during the summer transfer season. Due to a knock to his quad over the weekend, the Reds are down to THREE senior alternatives. A No. 8 who has evolved into a defensive midfielder, Ryan Gravenberch, was forced into duty as centre-back.
The Reds will have to stay this way until at least January, so Arne Slot's team may suffer from another injury or suspension. Not only do they have to worry about being light on numbers, there is plenty of uncertainty over the players currently on the books. Virgil van Dijk is secured until 2027 - but at 34 he will soon need to be replaced.