Entering the past two seasons, Liverpool is said to have the best and most comprehensive defense in world football.
Aside from the all-time great Virgil van Dijk, the Reds possess one of the best young defensive talents Ibrahima Konaté, and one of the most underrated options out there is Joël Matip, who made an important contribution to the club’s 2019 Champions League win. triumphal.
Joe Gomez is, perhaps to be fair, the weakest of the four for his lack of consistency, but at his best he is at least a match for any England centre-back.
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In the 2022/23 season, however, Konaté was the only player to actually serve, and even then, he missed so many injuries (about three months in total) that his mistakes His disciples were revealed.
Matip looks like his own injury problems have finally come to him as he’s been playing badly, while Gomez swings wildly after commanding performances and error-laden nightmares.
Most notably, of course, is that Van Dijk, who for so long has been virtually infallible, has fallen so severely that his opponents are more confident.
In this context, you could argue that 22 of the 23 runners-up Arsenal now have the edge when it comes to centre-backs.
Like Konaté, who could be his long-term partner in the France XI, William Saliba is well on his way to becoming world-class, with many blaming Arsenal’s decline at the end of last season on him. absent due to injury.
Saliba, who just signed a new long-term contract after a fantastic first season, is the man Mikel Arteta will build around.
His other pieces include Gabriel, who makes occasional errors but is better than Gomez and Matip at this stage, and Ben White, who spent most of last season at right-back but can also function. as the ideal modern centre-back, and the 23-year-old’s $26m (£20m/€23m) Jakub Kiwior should have stood out much more in his second season.
Importantly, Arsenal are now adding Ajax’s Jurriën Timber to their ranks, having agreed $49 million (£39 million/€45 million) deal with the Dutch giants, according to Sky Sports. Timber, former Eredivisie Player of the Year, has taken Arsenal’s defense to the next level.
For now, the Gunners look set to compete with Manchester City in the field, although it’s unclear what Pep Guardiola’s squad will look like with Aymeric Laporte ‘almost certainly’ leaving, according to The Athletic.
Manchester City want to sign Joško Gvardiol from RB Leipzig (via BBC Sport), which will provide Guardiola with an unrivaled array of options, but it remains to be seen whether it can complete a deal. .
Meanwhile, Liverpool will look to re-establish the top spot with the necessary addition of a new face, which could be Chelsea’s Levi Colwill if given the opportunity (via David Lynch/The Redmen TV). With two midfielders already added, the addition of another defender (to strengthen the ranks, rather than just to compete with Arsenal, although both can happen at the same time) should be a priority.
Colwill, a key part of the England Under-21 side that just won the European Championship without conceding a goal, is one of the best long-term additions the Reds can make, even as Chelsea are in great shape. want to keep him. There are also others Liverpool are considering.
However, whoever comes, Liverpool must not get ahead of themselves. By adding Timber, Kai Havertz and most importantly Declan Rice for a combined fee of more than $256 million (£200m/233m), Arsenal can ensure that their surprise title challenger will does not happen instantaneously.
Naturally, Liverpool could focus on City’s benchmark, but the first target should be Arteta’s men, who finished 17 points last season.
If, and it’s a big if, Jürgen Klopp can get his team back in the battle for the top spot, he’ll have to be wary of a new opponent.
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