View: Arne Slot must axe 14% Liverpool man Andy Robertson after what he did v Man United
Despite Liverpool managing to triumph over Manchester United in their most recent Premier League game, Andy Robertson was not at his best.
The left-back has been a regular in the Reds’ squad since arriving from Hull City in 2017.
The defender was part of a side that got relegated from the Premier League that season but Jurgen Klopp saw something in the Scotsman that enticed him.
Since his arrival, there’s no denying that he’s made his way up the ranks and has turned out to be one of Liverpool’s best defenders in recent times.
However, following his long-term injuries last term, it feels as if the 30-year-old isn’t the same player he used to be.
It’s also clear that Liverpool feel the same way as, throughout the summer, the Reds were linked with a plethora of left-backs as long-term replacements for the 30-year-old [Daily Express, 4 August].
Arne Slot should bench Andy Robertson for the next Liverpool game
While it may seem harsh to call for Slot to axe the Scotsman from his starting 11, when one player isn’t playing up to the standards that the rest of their team are setting, they stick out like a sore thumb.
This is shown by statistics from Sofascore which highlights that Robertson was one of the worst-performing players on the Reds’ team.
The defender was hooked in the 83rd minute for Kostas Tsimikas and failed to make much of an impact while on the field. Robertson failed to contribute to any goals and only had an expected assists (xA) value of just 0.07.
Granted, defenders aren’t always expected to push forward but with the height of Liverpool’s defensive lines, the Scotsman’s number should be better.
His poor offensive work is also shown by his heatmap. For the vast majority of the game, the defender was behind the halfway line and although some runs forward were made, he failed to attempt any dribbles throughout the clash.
Robertson made just one key pass throughout the entire game and of the seven long balls he attempted during the clash, only 14 per cent made it to where they were supposed to go.
In addition to his poor offensive work, his defensive actions weren’t up to much either.
The 30-year-old only made one tackle throughout the tie and won just 33 per cent of his ground duels.
In terms of the number of times he lost possession, Robertson managed to do so 11 times which, when compared to Virgil Van Dijk, (who played the full 90 minutes) and only lost possession four times, shows how poor the defender was in possession.
In addition, the fact that Slot chose against selling Joe Gomez this summer should also worry Robertson somewhat as the former Charlton man had a stellar season as a full-back last term.
Each of these stats coupled with the fact that he only had 56 touches of the ball throughout the game, outline valid reasons why the defender should be benched for Liverpool’s upcoming game against Nottingham Forest on 14 September.
In other Liverpool news, Paul Scholes has shared what he was blown away by during the Reds’ game against Manchester United.
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