Liverpool fans will want to forget their team’s start to the Premier League season as quickly as possible. The sooner they are able to turn things around, the easier that will become. Liverpool has rallied with three wins and a draw over its last four league games and manager Brendan Rodgers has said he feels his team is playing its best football of the year right now.
Even after their terrible start, Liverpool is still just five points back of a top-four spot in the Premier League table and they have plenty of time to close the gap if they continue to play at a high level. Here are four steps Liverpool must take to get back on track and find their way in to the top four this season.
Improve The Back Line Of Defense
The first, and perhaps most important, step that Rodgers must take is addressing the team’s back line in the center – in particular, where Dejan Lovren and Martin Skrtel have been less than impressive. The inconsistency in their play has left Liverpool exposed time and again on the back line and they can’t afford to continue to be exposed.
While there may not be many options available in the January transfer window, there is also the option of making a change in-house with Mamdou Sakho already available. Addressing the position in the January transfer window would be a bold move but, considering the play of their two center backs to this point, it wouldn’t be a major surprise if they replaced both Lovren and Skrtel at some point in the very near future.
Acquire A Striker
After addressing the issues in the heart of their defense, the logical next step for Liverpool would be to acquire a striker that can fill the role that Mario Balotelli has failed at since joining the squad. The club took a major gamble hoping that Balotelli could help fill the void up front left by the departure of Luis Suarez, but the move hasn’t worked out and there is nothing wrong with accepting that and moving on. There are still a handful of teams that would be interested in purchasing Balotelli and they could then use that money to acquire someone to slot in with Raheem Sterling and Rickie Lambert.
Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema is one name that has been linked to a potential move and acquiring a player that skilled would provide a major boost to Liverpool’s hopes of reaching the top four.
Resting Captain Gerrard
Another step that Liverpool must consider is providing captain Steven Gerrard with more rest. Gerrard has played in every league game for his club this season and it has undoubtedly taken a toll on the 34-year-old.
One of the main reasons why is probably because Liverpool has had to dig out of an early-season hole and they’ve wanted to have their leader in the lineup as much as possible. However, Emre Can is a capable replacement against some of the league’s weaker teams and it would be wise for Liverpool to keep its captain as rested as possible with some major tests still ahead of them this Premier League season.
Shop For A Better Keeper
One final step that Liverpool might want to consider to help turn their season around is to acquire a talented goalkeeper that could serve as an upgrade ahead of Simon Mignolet and Brad Jones. The lack of an elite goaltender has hurt Liverpool this year and there are plenty of possible replacements that might be available come January. One name that has been linked to a move to Liverpool has been Petr Cech, although the obvious fact that Chelsea won’t want to move him to a rival in season could delay his eventual move.
Liverpool is still in contention for a top four spot in the Premier League and while they have played better of late these four steps could go a long way towards boosting their chances in 2015.
