Liverpool legend John Barnes has hailed Fabinho as Jurgen Klopp’s ‘most consistent performer’ this season despite the team’s difficult campaign.
The current Premier League title holders have struggled this term and after 29 games played, find themselves down in seventh place in the table.
An unprecedented level of injuries in defence has seen them lose Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip for the majority of the season, which has forced Klopp to get creative with his backline.
Midfielders Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, who have both struggled with their own injury problems, have had to fill in at centre-back.
Last month, Klopp named Georginio Wijnaldum as his ‘most consistent player’ this season, however, Barnes is of a different opinion to the Liverpool boss.
‘The one player who has impressed me the most for Liverpool this season is Fabinho,’ Barnes told Goal.
‘Due to injuries, he’s been put into defence and played quite well throughout the season.
‘You can see the influence he has on the team when he’s put back in the midfield. Fabinho’s been Liverpool’s most consistent performer.’
‘The way Liverpool play as a team affects every individual’s performance,’ he added.
‘The reason individual players aren’t performing well is because the team isn’t performing cohesively. They are all part of the same machine.
‘For example, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are affected by the performance of the midfield players playing at the back.
‘They’re not playing as well as they should, but it’s not their fault that Liverpool haven’t got the players there to supplement and complement them in defence.
‘I don’t look at any individual and say they’re the ones that have fallen short – the entire team has fallen short. The problem with Liverpool’s centre-backs means that the performance of the whole team has changed.’
MORE : Chelsea enter race to sign Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum on free transfer
Follow Metro Sport across our social channels, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
For more stories like this, check our sport page
