Joe Gomez must return to the starting XI

Joel Matip will miss the next six weeks due to an aggravated knee injury and Jurgen Klopp must reinstate Joe Gomez in the starting lineup.

The Reds host Manchester City at Anfield in under two weeks’ time in a must-win game that will play a vital role in shaping the way the Premier League title race looks heading into Christmas.

Dejan Lovren has started the last two games in all competitions for Liverpool but if the Merseysiders are to succeed without Matip, they need to drop the Croatian for Gomez.

He might have played well against Spurs on Sunday but in Belgium, it was his mistake that allowed Genk to score a late consolation goal and that kind of sloppiness could prove deadly when Man City visit Anfield.

Since the start of 2018/19 in the league:

With a Virgil-Gomez CB partnership – 5 goals conceded in 10 games = 0.50 goals conceded per game

Virgil-Matip – 16 goals conceded in 24 games = 0.67 goals per game

Virgil-Lovren – 11 goals conceded in 13 games = 0.85 goals per game

— Raj Chohan (@rajsinghchohan) October 28, 2019

Last season, Gomez and Virgil van Dijk formed a partnership that lasted until the start of December that was being hailed as having the potential to become one of the best ever in Premier League history.

Given his recent frustrations, this is the perfect time for Gomez to prove once again that he is Liverpool’s second-best defender and deserving of a place in the starting XI.

His pace, ball-playing abilities and fearlessness are the perfect foil to van Dijk’s aerial strength and positioning and allows Trent Alexander-Arnold more freedom to roam up the right flank.

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Source: anfieldhq.com