Jamie Carragher hit out at Liverpool’s “unbelievable” and “absolutely shocking” defending in their 4-2 win over Bournemouth – saying they will not retain their Premier League title if they continue with those standards.
Liverpool won on an emotional night at Anfield thanks to late goals from Federico Chiesa and Mohamed Salah.
But they were given a real scare by the Cherries as Antoine Semenyo’s quickfire double cancelled out goals either side of half-time by Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo.
Both of Semenyo’s goals saw Liverpool caught out on the transition – with Bournemouth’s second goal seeing the young forward run nearly the length of the pitch before finding the bottom corner.
Carragher also hit out at Ibrahima Konate, who he felt was responsible for poor defending for both goals.
“It is unbelievable,” said Carragher on Friday Night Football after the game (via Sky Sport). “It’s fantastic from Semenyo – but Liverpool have had this problem.
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“How many players were ahead of the ball – maybe eight players – when they were winning 2-1? That can’t happen. It’s absolutely shocking at this level.
“For Semenyo to run that far and get his shot away is incredible – but where Konate is going? He had a really, really poor night tonight at centre-back.”
Carragher added that Liverpool’s defending has been poor during their pre-season campaign. There were similar goals conceded in the 4-2 defeat against AC Milan, while they also conceded twice against Athletic Club and Crystal Palace in the Community Shield.
The Sky Sports pundit was also critical of Liverpool’s defending at Wembley – and suggested on Friday night that it is too easy for teams to cut through Arne Slot’s side.