Carragher says he’s still waiting to see the best of Naby Keita in a Liverpool shirt.
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher says he is still waiting to see Naby Keita hit his best form at Anfield.
Speaking on Sky Sports Monday Night Football, 24/02, 7:54pm, Carragher said there is a difference between what the naked eye sees when watching Keita and what the stats bear out.
He said: “Keita, this is still the man I’m still waiting to really explode and show Liverpool supporters what he’s really about. He’s a funny player. You can watch a game – like away at Norwich – when he should have scored. I didn’t think he played particularly well. He was okay.
“But you get all the stats about how many times he regains the ball, passes to people in the box, he’s always top of them. When I watch a game I don’t feel like I see that. He’s got to stay fit. There is still a role for someone at Liverpool to add attacking thrust. That’s what I want to see more of.”
Keita and Fabinho were brought in after the Champions League final loss in 2018, geared towards taking Liverpool’s midfield to a new level.
Fabinho has done exactly that with his screening in front of the defence, allowing Jordan Henderson to push further on, but as Carragher said, Klopp is still waiting on Keita.
A lot of that is because he hasn’t been able to stay fit. He’s shown what he can do in glimpses and now it’s time for him to do it on a regular basis.
But it is scary to think perhaps Liverpool can go to the next level again if Keita clicks into gear and gives them even more of a goal threat from midfield while also keeping that intense pressing game up.
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