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Aymeric Laporte’s injury last season knocked Man City out of the title race at Christmas. The Pitch to Post podcast asks: could the same thing happen to Liverpool without Virgil van Dijk?
DOWNLOAD THE SKY SPORTS PITCH TO POST THE REVIEW PODCAST ON APPLE, or listen to it on Spotify above …
Liverpool defender Van Dijk will undergo surgery following a challenge from Jordan Pickford in Saturday’s Merseyside derby, suffering a reported torn ACL, and could be out until spring.
City suffered a similar blow to their defense in August last year, with Laporte spending a total of 30 games on the sidelines through injury, while Pep Guardiola’s side struggled to fill the gap, finishing 18 points behind Liverpool in the race. for the title.
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Will Liverpool’s season be similar? Or are they better prepared to deal with the absence of their talisman, which played every minute of their historic title-winning season in 2019/20?
On the latest Pitch to Post Review podcast, Jasper taylor is joined by Brand Gerard Y Ben ransom to analyze exactly what this means for Liverpool.
Download Sky Sports Pitch to post a podcast on Apple, or listen to it on Spotify above …
The time scale: April before?
Ben Ransom from Sky Sports News:
“Look at the injury, we know it’s an anterior cruciate ligament injury. To me, that’s six to nine months of what we’ve seen with other professionals. At best, it could be back in week 32 of April Even if he’s back in training though, will he be fit?
“If it’s seven months away, it could be Gameweek 37. But again, at that point in the season, who knows if they’d want to bring it back? It’s a long road, and you have to remember the fitness of the game.
“Aymeric Laporte’s injury last year was, for me, an absolute reflection of this. He was the most important defensive player they had, they were one center of the squad and they lost him for most of the season.
Ayemeric Laporte missed 30 games for Man City last season, and he missed hugely
“Laporte’s injury was not as serious as Van Dijk’s, and it took him five months to play again. He returned to play at the end of January and was injured on the last day of August.
“He collapsed again, we didn’t see him for another month, then he came back, collapsed again a couple of games later, and he’s just getting back in shape. It’s clearly not as simple as saying, ‘It’s six months.'”
Loss of an orchestrator, but hope for Liverpool?
Virgil van Dijk has been Liverpool’s orchestrator since joining from Southampton in January 2018.
Sky Sports Gerard Brand:
“It is huge. The reaction has been ‘title wide open’ and that this changes everything for Liverpool – I would say separately that the title was quite open before Van Dijk’s injury – but, nevertheless, it is possible. that we are looking back at this news in seven months. ” and mark it as the most defining moment of the season.
“He’s their orchestrator, and on a team that plays risky, high-level American football, you need a cool head and he’s very much that. And he’s clearly their leader alongside Jordan Henderson. So that’s a massive blow to Klopp. After the game, he almost looked surprised.
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“But I think the only thing Liverpool fans can hold on to is that their midfield is probably not your typical title-winning midfield as everyone is focused on energy, and defensive energy in particular; getting back on track. ball and eliminate opportunities before the ball. It even reaches their defense. They do a lot of their defense before Van Dijk’s men get close to the ball.
“This may be controversial, but I don’t think it’s as bad as City losing Laporte last season. Of course that ended terribly, they couldn’t find a partner, they lost Fernandinho’s influence in midfield and put him on defense.” . a move that still really puzzles me, and they were never the same. “
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Fabinho to fit in?
Fabinho has played central a handful of times for Liverpool
Sky Sports Gerard Brand:
“I’m interested to see what Klopp is doing here; Joe Gomez and Joel Matip may line up together, but there are concerns there, particularly Gomez’s form. I wonder if Fabinho goes down on defense. He tried it there twice. Already. this season, once in the victory over Chelsea, where he impressed.
“He also played with Fabinho in the central half against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the knockout stage of the Champions League in 2018/19 and helped to score a clean sheet, when Van Dijk was out. That prepared to Liverpool to progress and then win the tournament, so obviously there is confidence there. “
Ben Ransom from Sky Sports News:
“Like Fernandinho, taking Fabinho on defense and losing him in midfield could be a blow to Liverpool.
“But I think Fabinho will be the natural replacement, certainly for next season. He can talk to everyone, he is the only player, like Van Dijk, who can have Gómez or Matip with him, and tell the laterals to do so. “
Download Sky Sports Pitch to post a podcast on Apple, or listen to it on Spotify above …
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