‘Didn’t work’: After Trent, pundit says Liverpool now have another player who ‘can’t defend to save his life’

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Steve Nicol has been ripping into Thiago Alcantara for his defensive shortcomings.

Speaking on The Highbury Squad YouTube channel, Nicol has been discussing Liverpool’s midfield issues at the moment, and he highlighted the Spaniard as one player who is a problem.

Indeed, the pundit says that Thiago is a signing that hasn’t worked out, he says that the midfielder is never fit, and more pertinently, he stated that he can’t defend to save his life.

Thiago can’t defend

Nicol discussed the midfielder.

“Everyone is there for a reason and everyone has to do a job. For the defence, the less you’re called upon the better, and this season when they’ve been called upon they’ve gone AWOL,” Nicol said.

“The midfield, you need to change the faces, when they were doing well they signed Keita and that looked like a good deal when he was in the Bundesliga and he worked hard, you can understand Klopp looking at Keita and you can understand bringing Thiago in who had a bit more silkiness to it. It wasn’t crazy, but both of those didn’t work. In some ways there was a plan, it just so happens that they haven’t worked out, as we see, Keita is never fit, Thiago is never fit and can’t defend to save his life.”

Harsh

Thiago isn’t necessarily Virgil van Dijk, but to say that he can’t defend to save his life is incredibly harsh.

Just look at the stats, he’s averaging three tackles per game and 1.4 interceptions per game, his defensive output is actually very solid, and, to be honest, that’s not his job either.

Indeed, Thiago isn’t a number six. He’s a creative midfielder first and foremost, and yet, his tackling and interception numbers are still a cut above many other midfielders’.

To say that Thiago can’t defend is incredibly unfair.