Sky Sports pundit Paul Robinson has slammed Adam Lallana for his performance in Liverpool’s 2-1 win against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday.
Lallana, 31, was handed his first Premier League start of the season by Jurgen Klopp and many feel as though he should have got on the scoresheet when he squandered a golden opportunity to equalise for Liverpool in the second half.
As soon as Lallana was substituted off when the Reds were a goal behind, Andrew Robertson pinched a goal back before Sadio Mane rounded off the win for the Reds deep into stoppage time.
Former England goalkeeper Robinson was hardly impressed by what he saw from Lallana in the centre of Liverpool’s midfield.
“It was a difficult one for Lallana,” Robinson told Football Insider.
“I think he looked to lack of composure at times, he dwelt on the ball, he was slow on the ball, he had a bad miss in the second half and you could see his lack of football.
“It wasn’t the Lallana we are used to seeing, bursting forward, making those runs, putting through balls, I think he had the reins on.”
OPINION
Lallana was not too terrible on Saturday. The 31-year-old’s issue is that he replaced Fabinho and played in a game when Liverpool were not really at their best for good periods. Lallana’s contract expires at the end of the season and it will be interesting to see what happens with the former Southampton midfielder because there was speculation surrounding his future on Merseyside in the last summer transfer window. It is bound to come up again in January unless the Reds get him tied down to a new contract. Jurgen Klopp has shown a willingness to keep the bulk of this squad of players together, especially those who are seen as senior roles like Lallana. It has worked for the German boss so far this season with Liverpool topping the Premier League table but it remains to be seen how those older players will cope over the festive period that includes a trip to Qatar for the Club World Cup.
