Jurgen Klopp has revealed that Andy Lonergan is expected to join Liverpool on a short-term basis as the German boss aims to sort out the goalkeeper situation at Anfield.
Alisson Becker suffered an injury that will keep him sidelined for several weeks against Norwich last week and as it stands, Adrian is the only other senior goalkeeper in the Reds’ squad.
However Liverpool look set to avoid a shortage of goalkeepers by signing free agent Lonergan, 35, and name him on the substitutes’ bench against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday night.
“The situation was even more difficult a few weeks ago because of injuries, but Caoimhin Kelleher is now in his final steps for being completely back,” the manager told Liverpool’s official website.
“He’s training only [for] five days or so, catching balls and all that stuff, it looks all good but of course we have to find a solution in the short term and that will be, if nothing happens from now to then, Andy Lonergan.
“He was in with us, he’s a brilliant character, a really nice lad and helped us a lot in the pre-season and now we decided to work together with him.
“So that’s a very experienced solution but in the moment when Caoimhin is back then obviously Adrian is No.1, Caoimhin probably No.2 but we have to see how then he can have some games with the U23s or U21s [so] that he gets match practice as well.
“We have to see how that works but that’s then how we cover that situation.”
OPINION
Signing Lonergan makes sense. As he is available, probably going to accept low wages and there is a shortage of goalkeepers at Anfield so Klopp needs him to join his squad for the coming weeks while Alisson is sidelined. Most top clubs have three senior goalkeepers to choose from in their squad and in a way, it is probably a good job that Alisson has suffered his injury at this early stage of the season rather than later on in the campaign when perhaps someone like Lonergan might have been snapped up by another club. The 35-year-old trained with Liverpool in the summer so he knows the players, the staff and the training ground. The former Leeds and Preston goalkeeper is also very experienced with over 300 Championship appearances to his name. He might not ever get a game for the Reds, but it’s better to have him there than no one at all.
