Liverpool vs Crystal Palace: The case for Joe Gomez to start
Liverpool play Crystal Palace on Saturday and could be without Andrew Robertson. This is the case for Joe Gomez to start the game.
Robertson missed out on Scotland duty because of an ankle injury and there are fears that he won’t be available to play against Palace this weekend.
That means Jurgen Klopp will need to think of another option to play at left-back, and Joe Gomez could be that person.
After featuring heavily in the second half of last season, the former Charlton man has dramatically fallen behind Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren in the pecking order.
Gomez started 2019/2020 alongside Virgil van Dijk but has since been sent to the bench for the majority of the campaign, but this is his time to reinvent himself as a left-back for the day.
When the defender first rose to the first team ranks at Liverpool, Gomez featured heavily as a left-back – until he suffered his first major injury.
Klopp has preferred to play the England international as a right-back, but this versatility can be a bonus and should allow him some vital first team minutes in the coming weeks.
James Milner is the reserve left-back and has played there already this season and led the side against MK Dons in the Carabao Cup. But against Palace, and especially Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend, Joe Gomez should be the man to start.
Milner might be fit as a fiddle but Gomez is quicker and a more natural defender. Zaha will try and twist his man into the ground and Liverpool need someone who is used to facing attackers on a daily basis – Joe is that man.
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While Milly is an excellent leader and a wonderful footballers, with an eye for a pass, Liverpool need Gomez at left-back to face against the threat of Zaha and Townsend.