Carragher Critiques Milos Kerkez as Liverpool's Full-Back Gamble
Jamie Carragher has torn into Liverpool left-back Milos Kerkez, branding him the “Darwin Nunez of full-backs” and accusing him of playing with chaos rather than control.
Kerkez has started Liverpool’s first two Premier League games of the season under Andoni Iraola, both ending in 2-2 draws against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest. Two points from six, the same defensive issues, and the spotlight has quickly swung to the flanks.
Carragher: “Head down and run”
Speaking on The Overlap, Carragher didn’t bother softening the blow.
“Their understanding of the game is really, really poor. You’re watching the game and thinking, ‘Why has he done that?’”
he said, grouping Kerkez’s decision-making in with wider concerns about Liverpool’s full-backs.
He then revisited a comparison he’d already made last season.
“I described Kerkez last season – and it was his first season, maybe it was a bit harsh at the time – he's the Darwin Nunez of full-backs. It's just like ‘head down and run’, everything Kerkez does is 100 miles an hour.”
For Carragher, the issue isn’t talent. It’s control. The £40 million signing, in his eyes, leans on raw speed instead of reading the game, losing composure when Liverpool most need calm.
Liverpool’s full-back gamble
The frustration is sharpened by context. Liverpool spent big in the summer, but not where many expected.
They allowed Andy Robertson to move on, saw another left-back depart after a loan spell, and still chose to stick with Kerkez as the starter. Iraola’s prior knowledge of him from Bournemouth strengthened that call.
“They've brought in Kerkez for £40million,” Carragher said. “He’s had his first season, it wasn't amazing, but right, you go: ‘OK, Iraola’s come in from Bournemouth, he knows him, he's still our left-back. Andy Robertson moved on, we had another left-back on loan, so we're probably not going to spend another £40million on another. He's our left-back, let him have another year’.”
The club then pushed their budget elsewhere. Bradley Barcola arrived for £106m. Jeremy Jacquet came in for £55m. Four more signings followed. None of them were full-backs.
On the opposite flank, Jeremie Frimpong has also come under heavy fire, his attacking qualities overshadowed by repeated questions about his defensive positioning. Both full-backs have been targeted after the opening draws, with pundits openly wondering whether Liverpool misread the market and their own squad.
Neville “stunned” by Liverpool’s choices
Gary Neville echoed Carragher’s concerns and went even further on the recruitment strategy.
For him, the warning signs were already there last season.
“The two full-backs, it was quite clear at the start of last season when you watched them for five or six matches, that defensively they weren’t going to be quite at the level to do it,” Neville said.
“I’m stunned. We talk about ‘will Arsenal regret not bringing in a forward’ – will Liverpool regret not bringing in a couple of full-backs?”
That’s the question now hanging over Anfield. Two games in, the numbers are small, the noise is not – and unless Kerkez and Frimpong find control to match their pace, this won’t just be an early-season debate. It will define how far Liverpool can actually go.
