Ragnar Klavan
Why Ragnar Klavan’s absence will have mixed consequences for Liverpool
Liverpool have spent big this season, bigger than any other club in the English Premier League. While Jurgen Klopp hasn’t hesitated to splash the cash to make necessary reinforcements to challenge for the title, the Reds also had to offload some of their less-fancied players.
And the offloading has come at the expense of the back line as Estonian centre-back Ragnar Klavan moved out the club. According to Liverpool Echo, the defender completed a £2million transfer to Serie A side Cagliari about a week back.
Klavan, who had joined Liverpool back in 2016 from German club Augsburg, made 53 appearances for the Merseysiders. During that time, the player also managed to net twice.
The vastly experienced defender played an integral role in Liverpool’s back line last season, making 8 appearances in the Champions League which included 3 starts. However, he fell out of favour after Dutchman Virgil van Dijk burst onto the scene in January.
Analyzing the situation, there could be two ways of looking at the move. On one hand, it is true that Klopp has enough cover for the centre-back position with the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Dejan Lovren, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip at his disposal. As things stand, it wouldn’t have been possible for Klopp to provide Klavan with regular starts or adequate game time.
On the other hand, the decision to offload someone like Klavan, who has a lot of experience under his belt, could backfire in terms of squad depth since Liverpool will compete in different competitions this season. The left-footed centre-back has made a total of 124 appearances for his national team.
Klopp started with 21-year-old Joe Gomez in the heart of Liverpool’s defence alongside van Dijk in the 4-0 win over West Ham on opening day.
Klavan’s departure has certainly opened the door for the youngster to make that position his own. A fast and agile defender, the young Englishman has already shown composure and physicality that belies his age and Klopp has every reason to expect better things from him in the coming days.
Although Liverpool have the right to be excited about Gomez’s rise, the scenario is not quite the same with Joel Matip. The Cameroonian has been rather underwhelming during his stay at Anfield, failing to replicate his previous showings in the Bundesliga with Schalke.
The training sessions seem to have taken a toll on him as he continues to struggle with his fitness. In the last season as well, Matip looked ordinary with his composure and positioning. The scheme of things involving Matip as a reserve centre-back does not look all that bright for Liverpool.
Dejan Lovren has progressed leaps and bounds in his Liverpool career and after a calm and composed display for Croatia at the World Cup, he is expected to be the outright favourite to partner van Dijk at the back.
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If Gomez continues his good run of form and Matip sorts out his injury and consistency problems, Klopp would not have much of a headache with Klavan’s exit.
However, if either van Dijk or Lovren succumb to a long-term injury, Liverpool might miss Klavan’s experience at the back.
