Talented Young Liverpool Defender Set For Sink Or Swim Moment Against Crystal Palace

Talented Young Liverpool Defender Set For Sink Or Swim Moment Against Crystal Palace
16:30, 20 Aug 2018

The early part of he season can often give young players an opportunity to stake their claims for a place in the first team and that is exactly what has happened to Joe Gomez.

The Charlton youth product has long been highly thought of Anfield but so far his Premier League career has been interrupted by a succession of injuries which has stunted his progress.

Those setbacks now look to be a thing of the past though and with doubts over the remaining senior centre backs in the squad, the 21-year-old will know that another solid display against Palace tonight could well be the defining moment of his career.

Joel Matip is expected to be back on the bench after suffering yet another injury during the pre-season tour to the States, while Dejan Lovren has arrived back from the World Cup with a knock which means that Gomez is going to start for the second match-in-a-row alongside Virgil Van Dijk.

This is the moment for one of the hottest young defenders in English football to take his chance and make that starting berth his own.

A strong performance against an attack which includes Christian Benteke and Wilfried Zaha will put him pole position to take advantage of others bad luck and fulfil his clear potential. On the face of it, Gomez has everything in the locker to be a world class centre-back with pace, power and anticipation his three clear strengths and the Liverpool fans are desperate for him grab the shirt with both hands.

Long term doubts remain about Dejan Lovren even when fit, given his ability to throw in glaring errors at any time and there are certainly major question marks about the durability of Joel Matip, who has failed to stay injury free for any length of time since arriving from the Bundesliga on a free transfer.

Jurgen Klopp was happy to let Ragnar Klavan go to Serie A last week which is an indication that he is content with the strength and depth of the defenders he has at his disposal in the Liverpool squad, which in itself is a pointer to suggest that Gomez is going to get regular game time this term.

The England international spent much of last season at right-back but it is clear he believes he is better suited to a role in the centre of the park and his partnership with Van Dijk did start well at home against West Ham. In truth though, the Hammers were diabolical and it will be a much stiffer test of a young defenders credentials away at an in-form Palace team with plenty of attacking prowess.

As it stands, Joe Gomez has made just 29 appearances in the Premier League for Liverpool since joining the club in 2015 but there is a very real chance that tonight's game against Palace could be a sink or swim moment in the career of the talented youngster.

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