Jamie Carragher highlights huge Liverpool transfer mistake that could ‘derail’ their season

Liverpool’s bid for another Premier League title is faltering, and former Red Jamie Carragher has identified a key transfer misstep he insists must be fixed in January.

The Merseysiders have picked up a measly three points from their last six league games, and as a result they have dropped to eighth in the table, eight points behind leaders Arsenal.

Liverpool forked out a record-breaking £446m in the summer transfer window, spending huge sums on Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong and Giovanni Leoni.

The latter, Leoni, was their only centre-back signing. The 18-year-old impressed during a League Cup clash before suffering a serious knee injury that rules him out for the remainder of the season. 

And now, Carragher believes that the failure not to bring in another new centre-back was a grave error from Arne Slot’s side, and it could ‘derail’ their season.

“We need to spend in January, we need to buy a centre-back, we should have bought a centre-back in the summer,” Carragher said on Sky Sports, ahead of the broadcast of the Inside: Liverpool documentary on Thursday.

“They didn’t, and then the one centre-back they did buy, Leoni, a young Italian player, looked fantastic in the game that he played, a Carabao Cup game. Unfortunately, he got an ACL injury, so we won’t see him until next season.

“Liverpool are probably one injury away at centre-back from really derailing the season, so they have to go to the market in January.”

READ MORE 🔴 Marc Guehi on cusp of Liverpool move as multiple sources share if January deal will get green light

Liverpool still want Marc Guehi – but may need a stop-gap

Of course, Liverpool did want another centre-back in the summer. They had agreed a £35m deal to sign Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, before the transfer collapsed late in the window.

TEAMtalk has consistently reported that Guehi remains a top target for Liverpool, and Slot is still keen to bring him to Anfield. However, the question is whether they can get him in January, or when his Palace contract is set to expire next summer.

Our transfer insider Dean Jones believes that a stop gap centre-back signing could be brought in to bridge the gap should the Reds be made to wait, or they miss out on Guehi altogether.

“Obviously, they have been hoping to sign Marc Guehi after failing to land him in the summer, but there are some doubts about that happening, especially in January, and I have heard they might yet consider finding someone to bridge the gap and help them in the second half of the season,” Jones exclusively told TEAMtalk.

“They would only do it for the right player, but, from what I understand, they are open-minded about the prospect of finding an experienced figure to come in and give them a new sense of resilience in defence.

“It’s not something that is completely decided at this stage, but I do think that there is a realisation they could do with another player to come in because they are vulnerable in defence.

“I don’t know exactly where they are at in terms of identifying the ideal new defensive option, but there are some early indications that they could move for an attainable player.

“That could be someone with an expiring contract, or someone who is on the fringes somewhere else, who might fancy the challenge of coming in and making an impact.”

Latest Liverpool news: Chelsea ‘revenge’ raid / Semenyo boost

Meanwhile, Chelsea reportedly want ‘revenge’ after losing Rio Ngumoha to Liverpool and are plotting a move for 15-year-old Reds winger, Joshua Abe.

He is considered one of England’s best players in his age bracket, and Arsenal could have an ace card in the race for his signature.

In other news, Liverpool reportedly have a clear advantage over Tottenham in the battle to sign Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo.

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