Former England defender, Jamie Carragher has blamed one Liverpool player following their 2-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday night.
He stated that Ibrahima Konate did not meet the expectations of Liverpool supporters.
Arne Slot’s team struggled to contend with PSG at the Parc des Princes, where goals from Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in each half secured a well-deserved victory for the Champions League titleholders.
Liverpool was unable to record a shot on target and managed only 26 percent possession, while Slot acknowledged after the match that his team was primarily focused on ‘surviving’ PSG’s attack in the second half.
Slot chose to implement a back five formation against PSG, but Carragher contends that Virgil van Dijk was hindered by a ‘poor’ performance from Konate.
“He [Slot] approached the back five incorrectly, and they were actually more exposed with a back five than they would have been with a back four,” Carragher remarked to CBS Sports.
“Their man-to-man marking across the pitch meant that the three centre-backs had to cover the entire width of the field, and for Virgil van Dijk, who was positioned in the middle of a back three tonight… typically, at a certain age, being in the center of a back three is ideal, as everyone is in position and there is some protection. This situation was different.
“Defenders were advancing into midfield, leaving no one to mark, and Virgil van Dijk, at 34 years old, was forced to run into those areas and cover ground. He was unable to manage it.
“While some have criticized Van Dijk for his performances this season, I believe that criticism has been unfair.
“He plays every match, and the player next to him has been dreadful all season and again poor tonight, Konate, who makes a mistake in every game, which is not easy to deal with. Therefore, I still consider him to be one of Liverpool’s better players, Virgil van Dijk.
“However, this evening, in that back three, I have never witnessed him [Van Dijk] appear so uneasy in a Liverpool jersey throughout my life.
“I believe he will be imploring Arne Slot to refrain from utilizing that system again, as he struggled immensely.
“Nonetheless, I must also emphasize that it is not solely Liverpool’s system or tactical errors; PSG were truly phenomenal. The highest praise I can offer them is that it resembled observing Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.”