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Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate is not to blame for the Reds' recent poor form, ex-France full-back Bacary Sagna has insisted, with Arne Slot's men having lost eight of their last 11 games in all competitions.
Konate has been struggling and though he started well against Nottingham Forest at the weekend, one mistake saw him quickly lose confidence in what has been something of a pattern in the early weeks of the campaign. Joe Gomez is one option to replace him in the starting XI but Slot said he hadn't trained in the week leading up to Saturday's game.
"Konate is not to blame for Liverpool’s recent performances," Sagna said. "The edge of the Liverpool penalty area is never covered, and we saw it again against Nottingham Forest last weekend.
"You can’t make judgments about Konate’s quality just based off a few games when the midfield isn’t doing their job from a defensive standpoint.
"For Nottingham Forest’s second and third goals on Saturday, there was no cover from the Liverpool midfield to track the goalscorer.
"If you give your man a yard in the penalty area in the Premier League, then you will be punished. I don’t want to blame Konate or any of the defenders for this because they need more help from the rest of the team."
Graeme Souness is in agreement that the Liverpool midfield needs to work more effectively to stop the defense from being exposed. And that is not the only issue that Slot must solve.
Sagna, though, doesn't believe that the Dutchman is in any danger of being fired at this point in the season, with more than enough time remaining to turn things around.
"I don’t think Slot’s job is under any threat," Sagna, speaking to Oddspedia, continued. "He just won the Premier League with Liverpool a few months ago.
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"It’s been a difficult few months for the team mentally and physically, but I firmly believe he deserves time to turn things around. For me, Slot is the right man to be in charge of Liverpool and to guide them through this period.
"The season was badly affected from the start when Diogo Jota passed away, which would have really affected all of them. When you win games, it’s easier to deal with it, but when you lose, it can become a problem.
"I know football isn’t always fair and you’re judged on results, but I don’t think changing coaches is the right move for Liverpool in this moment in time."
Liverpool.com says: Konate isn't the only problem but he is arguably the biggest. He looks panicked as soon as he makes an error and he can't seem to recover. Whether his contract situation is playing a role or not, that isn't helping the perception either.
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