OPINION
It would not be a lie if you were to say that Liverpool are having a bit of a crisis at the minute – especially after Tuesday’s poor excuse of a display.
The Reds were nowhere to be seen after being brushed aside by a fairly average Red Star Belgrade side, which is actually rather worrying.
Jurgen Klopp only made a few changes to the team that drew 1-1 with Arsenal on Saturday, so this performance has only highlighted that their Premier League title bid is being seriously compromised.
Some may argue that this is due to the fact that Klopp decided to leave midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri behind in order to focus on the job in hand.
That tactic has clearly not worked, so he must use his initiative and start the Swiss against Fulham if he wants to get their season back on track.
They missed his presence and creativity hugely on Tuesday based on the outing of the trio that started and there is no doubt that the manager needs to switch things around.
Most of the players are suffering with a lapse in form, but Shaqiri can be the player who changes that.
If Klopp continues to go with Gini Wijnaldum, James Milner and Adam Lallana in the midfield, then he is just setting the team up for further failure.
Even though he has his reasons for leaving the £90,000-a-week [Spotrac] ace on Merseyside, there will no doubt be a part of him that will be kicking himself for making the decision.
Klopp needs a player to come in and get the team’s season back on track and he could not have a better option than in the shape of Shaqiri.
Fulham may not be the toughest of opposition after their own woes recently, but as Klopp discovered on Tuesday, it is vital not to get too complacent against teams ranked lower.
Shaqiri is just the answer to Klopp’s problems at the moment, and he must not think twice about starting him on Saturday after the latest horror show.
