Liverpool's Defensive Gamble Faces Reality
The plan looked clever on paper. Two standout centre-backs at the U17 World Cup in Qatar, spotted early, moved on quickly. Within weeks, Liverpool had spent a combined £3.5m on Mor Talla Ndiaye of Senegal and Austria’s Ifeanyi Ndukwe, a neat piece of future-proofing overseen by Matt Newberry, the club’s head of global talent.
Fast forward to pre-season and that future arrived far sooner than anyone at Anfield intended.
With just eight minutes gone against Sunderland, Joe Gomez limped off. Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni were already unavailable. Suddenly, the teenage duo from Qatar were no longer a project. They were Liverpool’s centre-back pairing.
For a club that prides itself on long-term planning, the short term now looks alarmingly exposed.
A thin line at the back
Andoni Iraola did not sugar-coat it. Even before Gomez’s latest setback, Liverpool’s new head coach described his defensive options as “very thin”. The events of that opening friendly underlined the point in brutal fashion.
Gomez missed training in Chicago on Sunday, with the club awaiting further assessment this week. He is Liverpool’s longest-serving current player, a stalwart since arriving from Charlton in 2015. He is also a symbol of what might have been. According to Transfermarkt, he has already missed 225 games through injury in his Anfield career.
The reliance on Virgil van Dijk has never felt heavier. The captain is the only fit senior centre-back. He is 35, coming off a Premier League season in which he played every minute. His presence still settles those around him, but he is no longer the all-conquering force of his peak years. Like Gomez, he is also entering the final 12 months of his contract. There is a realistic scenario in which both move on next summer.
Behind them, Liverpool have invested aggressively in potential. Jacquet, 21, and Leoni, 19, arrived for £60m and £26m respectively, the club convinced they had secured the best young centre-backs in France and Italy. Those signings helped justify the decision to let Ibrahima Konate leave on a free for Real Madrid.
Jacquet is expected to make his debut against Leeds on Sunday. Leoni will follow. Ndiaye and Ndukwe have already had a taste. The pathway is clear. The problem is obvious: none of them are ready to carry a title-chasing defence on their own.
“We need players. It’s fairly obvious”
Robbie Fowler watched the Sunderland game and did not bother dressing up the situation.
“We need players. It’s fairly obvious,” the former Liverpool striker told BBC Sport in New York, where Liverpool face Wrexham on Wednesday.
Fowler’s frustration for Gomez was clear. “I'm very sad for Joe Gomez, who has been so unfortunate with injuries. This could have been a real chance to cement his place and for him to show that we don't need another centre-half.”
Instead, the injury only sharpened the focus on what Liverpool lack: experience.
“We've spent money on Jacquet and Leoni and the guidance that Joe and Virgil can give from their experience to the young lads is telling,” Fowler said. “We won't see the best version of the young lads yet, but you do need that experience in the squad. And yes, the manager's been on record saying that we need players and I would not be surprised if another centre-half is in that conversation.”
The club’s recent recruitment drive underlines the strategy. In the six months from last summer to January 2026, Liverpool agreed deals for five centre-backs aged 20 or under at the time: Leoni, Ndiaye, Ndukwe, Noah Adekoya and Jacquet. The production line is stocked.
One detail matters, though. Ndukwe, who impressed against Sunderland, must go out on loan this year because he does not yet meet UK work permit criteria. Another piece of potential, but not a solution for Iraola’s immediate headache.
Market constraints and missed chances
From the outside, one name hangs over this defensive reshaping: Marc Guehi. Liverpool’s failure to get a deal done for the England international last summer looks more pointed now, with Van Dijk ageing, Gomez injured and Konate gone.
There is also the Jarell Quansah question. Liverpool inserted a buyback clause when they sold the academy graduate to Bayer Leverkusen for £35m last July. For now, there are no plans to activate it. The option exists, the intention does not.
Financially, the picture is tight at the top end of the squad. If Liverpool land Bradley Barcola, valued by Paris St-Germain at more than £100m, it will squeeze what they can do elsewhere. Jacquet and Victor Munoz have already cost a combined £94.5m. Without major sales from Iraola’s group, nobody at Anfield expects a repeat of last summer’s £450m outlay.
Fowler sees the familiar pattern.
“When you look at Liverpool across the last decade, one of the problems that we've had is that the first 11 is more than capable but the argument that people have is the squad depth,” he said.
“I'm a big believer in getting the squad right because it gives everyone a lift and keeps people on their toes, knowing that if you're not performing, someone else could do the job.
“Go back to the days of Phil Neal and he'll tell you stories about how players would never want to get injured because they knew that if someone else came, they wouldn't get their place back.
“You need that mentality and I think that has a real knock-on effect on standards.”
Right now, that internal pressure barely exists at centre-back. Van Dijk starts if fit. Gomez, when available, follows. Behind them is promise, not proven reliability.
Long-term vision, short-term risk
Liverpool’s recruitment team can point to a clear philosophy. Identify elite talent early. Pay big fees before the wider market catches up. Give them minutes, give them coaching, and let Anfield do the rest.
On paper, the long-term potential at centre-back is rich. Jacquet, Leoni, Ndiaye, Ndukwe, Adekoya – five young defenders with size, mobility and pedigree. The club is confident the position is locked down for years to come.
The present tells a different story. Van Dijk is ageing. Gomez is injured again. Konate is in Madrid. Quansah is in Leverkusen. Guehi is elsewhere. Ndukwe must leave on loan. Jacquet and Leoni are learning on the job. Ndiaye is still finding his feet.
The future may be secure. The now is fragile.
Liverpool have gambled that youth, guided by a couple of veterans, can bridge the gap. Pre-season has already exposed how thin that margin is. The next move in this window will reveal whether the club doubles down on its vision, or bows to the reality that, at the heart of a defence, potential without experience can quickly turn from asset into risk.
