Why is Emre Can such a divisive figure at Liverpool?

Emre Can has little over five months remaining on his current Liverpool deal and as speculation grows over where his future lies, the German continues to divide opinion among supporters.

The German midfielder joined Liverpool in 2014 from Bayer Leverkusen when he was just 20 years old and has had his fair share of ups and downs in a red shirt but I think it’s fair to say that he gets an underserved amount of criticism.

When Liverpool ended Manchester City’s unbeaten run last week Sunday, Emre Can was easily one of the best players on the pitch with his energy, physicality and desire to win the ball back imperative to the way Jurgen Klopp’s side pressed Pep Guardiola’s men off the pitch.

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Sunday, January 14, 2018: Liverpool’s Emre Can and Manchester City’s Leroy Sane during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

He combined superbly with Georginio Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to stifle the creative influence of Kevin de Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan while offering support for Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.

It was a performance that deservedly earned praise far and wide, with supporters lamenting the fact that he hadn’t yet signed a new deal and still doesn’t look any closer to putting pen to paper on a new contract with Liverpool.

While Manchester City might have had their 30 match unbeaten run ended by Liverpool with the help of Emre Can, it was eight days later that Swansea City inflicted a similar fate on the Reds.

The relegation stragglers, dwindling at a distant 20^th place at the very foot of the league table, were able to end Liverpool’s 18 game unbeaten run in all competitions and much like many others in Klopp’s starting XI, Can was a shadow of the player that was tearing into tackles against City.

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SWANSEA, WALES – Monday, January 22, 2018: Liverpool’s Emre Can looks dejected after missing a chance during the FA Premier League match between Swansea City FC and Liverpool FC at the Liberty Stadium. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Loyal supporters of Can will point out that his midfield compatriots were just as creatively sterile and devoid of ideas. My counter-argument to this would be that Can is often inconsistent and unable to regularly deliver the kind of performance we saw against Manchester City.

A criticism I used to have of Philippe Coutinho, when he was 22 and 23, was that he was also too inconsistent and unable to deliver high-quality performances on the regular and that to become the player we all knew he could and would, he needed to find a rhythm in his play.

The same goes for Can, who despite being one of the players who has stood out for Liverpool over the last three months, is lacking the consistency that is required of your top tier players. This is an issue when you consider he is knocking on the doors of many of Europe’s biggest clubs, with Juventus clearly very interested.

Supporters have grown fed up with a player who, despite not showing the lack of professionalism that Coutinho did in his bid to move to Barca, has been inconsistent and almost arrogant in his assumption that he deserves a spot in Jurgen Klopp’s side.

Whatever the outcome – and most at Anfield expect Can will go – the midfielder should be grateful to Klopp for playing him so often in a World Cup year while dousing any flames of discontent. (Chris Bascombe)

— Anfield HQ (@AnfieldHQ) January 24, 2018

This reached its apex in his performance against Swansea. Jurgen Klopp made the decision to hand the German the captain’s armband, a choice motivated by Can being the longest-serving player in the starting XI. This is understandable, but as many old school supporters feel – and I can’t help but agree – you don’t hand the captain’s armband to a player who isn’t fully committed to the club.

Dejan Lovren got the armband against Manchester City and for all the Croatian’s pitfalls, he is nothing but a loyal and passionate servant at Liverpool.

Now, I’m not having a go at Can here – more at Klopp, really – but Can is already a polarising figure among Liverpool supporters and to hand him the captain’s armband, a weighty symbol given the players who have worn it in the past, is really something that shouldn’t be done.

Six months could pass and a new contract could be signed and many Liverpool fans would be over the moon – myself included – but the German midfielder needs to find the consistency in his gameplay that saw Barcelona deem Coutinho worthy of £142 million.

READ MORE: The weaknesses still present at Liverpool that were exposed in their defeat to Swansea

STOKE-ON-TRENT, ENGLAND – Wednesday, November 29, 2017: Liverpool’s Emre Can reacts during the FA Premier League match between Stoke City and Liverpool at the Bet365 Stadium. (Pic by Peter Powell/Propaganda)

The former Bayer Leverkusen midfielder is only 24 years old and with three or four years to go until his prime, we might discover that he will only achieve the consistency that will make him a world class operator when he matures as a footballer.

Liverpool find themselves in a precarious situation with Can free to leave in five and a half months. The German will certainly turn into a top class midfielder despite his frustrating habits and if this happens at Juventus, this will be all the more frustrating.

In the Premier League this season, Can has made 42 tackles, 23 more than Jordan Henderson and 34 more than Georginio Wijnaldum. Without the German, Liverpool’s midfield really lacks bite.

Soon to be Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita has made 30 in the Bundesliga but the Guinean will not be playing in the deeper midfield role that Can occupies.

If Can moves on this summer, Jurgen Klopp really needs to buy a midfield enforcer or his side will be even more prone to conceding on the counter attack. There is no escaping the fact that, as much as Can be frustrating at times, he is a good player and Liverpool are better with him than without.

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Source: anfieldhq.com