Liverpool took on Sporting in the third preseason game of their American tour and Bruno Fernandes may have just ended Simon Mignolet’s career.
The Reds are going through a little bit of a difficult phase as they prepare for their first Premier League game of the season on the 9th of August.
Losses to Sevilla and Dortmund have been followed by news of a serious injury picked up by Nathaniel Clyne, while young left-back Yasser Larouci was scythed down by Joris Gnagnon and will be out for a few weeks.
And now Mignolet has just had his Liverpool career ended by rumoured transfer target Fernandes after he mysteriously let a shot that was hit straight at him squirm into the back of the net.
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However, Divock Origi took the game by the scruff of the neck and fired home again to level things after just 20 minutes – much to the relief of his Belgian mate.
Gini Wijnaldum then put the Reds 2-1 up but this lead didn’t last too long as Marcus Wendel restored parity after 52 minutes.
We all know that Jurgen Klopp isn’t here to take prisoners. Loris Karius was shipped off after a poor preseason campaign, and even though Mignolet is due to spend a second campaign on the bench, he still needs to stay on the gaffer’s good side.
All the noise coming from Anfield about the goalkeeper is that Klopp wants him to stay because the German views his number two as the best reserve in the league, but a few poor performances here and there would quickly change things.
Mignolet wants more first team football, and performances like this are going to harm his quest to get back into a Premier League starting line up. Even if Klopp sells the Belgian because of his poor performances, would teams pick him up on the back of a track record of errors? It’s doubtful.
Migs needs to do something he hasn’t done enough: grasp this chance with both hands, firmly, or Fernandes could be about to end his career.