Jurgen Klopp believes young centre-back Jarell Quansah can make a serious impact in Liverpool’s first team in the absence of a summer signing in defence, according to a new report from The Athletic.
The 20-year-old has featured appearances in the Premier League so far, making his debut as a substitute in the Newcastle away win back in August.
Many supporters were desperate for Liverpool to sign a central defender in the summer but the club instead focused on the undertaking of a significant midfield rebuild.
The report states that Liverpool ultimately could not find the right player for the right price in their search for a centre-back during the summer.
With so much investment in the midfield, Liverpool did not want to purchase any defender just because the price was reasonable. Liverpool like to carefully and efficiently recruit meaning a short-term fix in defence would not be suitable.
With Joel Matip and Joe Gomez the back-ups for Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate, Quansah suddenly finds himself as Jurgen Klopp’s fifth choice centre-back.
Nat Phillips went out on loan to Celtic, which allowed Quansah to rise up in the pecking order in Liverpool’s defence.
Gomez and Matip have both had a history of injury issues, meaning Quansah will likely receive a fair share of minutes this season.
The report from James Pearce states that Jurgen Klopp has faith in Quansah to step into the team at centre-back when called upon.
