Robertson: I Don’t Want a Repeat of the Liverpool Trio Scenario
Liverpool’s Scottish left-back, Andy Robertson, has revealed the latest developments regarding his future with the Reds.
Robertson’s contract with Liverpool expires at the end of the current season, and he will be free to sign with any other club starting next January.
Liverpool signed Bulgarian left-back Milos Krkic from Bournemouth at the beginning of this season.
Robertson was linked with a move to Atletico Madrid during the last summer transfer window.
In an interview with the British newspaper “The Independent,” Robertson said: “Whatever happens will be behind closed doors, and I’m not worried about anything right now.”
Robertson added: “If this is my last year at Liverpool, then it will be my last year. If not, so be it. But I think I’ve had a bit of a stressful summer thinking about my situation and my future.”
He continued: “I decided to enjoy the next few months, rather than put any pressure on myself. That’s what happens when you enter the last six months of your contract, so I’m trying to focus on football now.”
He added: “I’m happy to be back playing with the team. That’s important. We’ll see what happens, but I feel very comfortable, and the club has been fantastic with me.”
Robertson compared his situation this season to that of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and Trent Alexander-Arnold last season.
Last season was the final one for the aforementioned trio at Liverpool, before Salah and Van Dijk renewed their contracts, while Alexander-Arnold left for Real Madrid.
Robertson said: “I think everyone is tired of talking about the trio last season, but for me, my relationship with the club has been fantastic. They’ve done everything for me and my family.”
He concluded: “I don’t think I was bad to them in terms of signing from Hull City for £8 million and what I’ve given to the club since.”
Liverpool are having a disastrous season so far, suffering five defeats in the Premier League after just 11 rounds, dropping to eighth place in the standings.
Their most recent loss was a 3-0 defeat to Manchester City last Sunday at the Etihad Stadium.
Slot’s comments on the defeat
Liverpool manager Arne Slot asserted that his team’s situation could have been better had they gone into halftime trailing by only one goal against Manchester City, given that the first half ended 2-0.
Slot told Sky Sports after the match: “The first half was very difficult for us. Almost anyone would have expected that when we came in here – they pressed us very hard.”
He added: “We struggled a lot in the first half. We were hoping to go into halftime with a 1-0 lead, but there were five to ten crucial minutes in the match. Instead of going into halftime with a 1-1 draw or even trailing 2-1, we ended up trailing 2-0.”
He continued: “It was clear they were better than us in the first half.”
Regarding Virgil van Dijk’s disallowed goal, he said: “It’s difficult to give my opinion. It’s clear the wrong decision was made, at least in my opinion.”
He added: “He didn’t interfere with the goalkeeper at all. Immediately after the match, I watched the goal that the same referee allowed in Manchester City’s match against Wolverhampton last season.”
He explained: “It took the assistant referee 13 seconds to raise his flag for offside. There was clear communication, but as I said, it could have had a positive impact on the game.”
Regarding his opinion on the match, he said: “Set pieces make a difference. We conceded two goals from set pieces, and that was a clear reflection of being two goals down.”
He continued: “The game unfolded as it did, and we were lucky to have only conceded one goal in the first half, so it was a significant decision.”
He noted: “The second half was unpredictable. It was clear that City were the better team in the first half.”
He added: “They controlled the game and were better than us. We had a lot of problems and difficulties in playing the ball out from the back, so we lost possession early and they started to play.”
On Haaland’s missed penalty, he said: “The only thing I saw was the contact—but after the contact, he managed to put his foot exactly where he wanted it.”
On fixing many of the problems, he said: “I don’t know if that’s the case. It was a very good start to the week and a very bad end.”
He added: “Today, I don’t think that, apart from that decision, we would have played a good game. Overall, they were the better team – we need to improve – but I didn’t need this match to know that.”
Regarding the title race, he said: “I saw a team trying to get back into the game, but it wasn’t enough today, and that’s clear. Last season, when we were eight points ahead, we didn’t feel it was over.”
He concluded: “We shouldn’t be talking about the top spot; we should focus on our performance, which needs improvement.”
Van Dijk’s comments
For his part, Virgil van Dijk commented on his disallowed goal, saying: “In football, referees make the crucial decisions, and we have to deal with it on the pitch. There’s no point in discussing it, in my opinion. The fact is, we lost 3-0, and that’s a painful blow.”
He added: “It doesn’t matter what I say, because anything I say will be in the media, and the entire international break will be dedicated to my commentary on the decision. I’m just focused on the fact that we lost. You can debate whether it should have stood.”
He continued: “The first half was difficult. They were more comfortable with the ball, and it was hard for our players to press them. I don’t think there was much danger, but Doku had a good game, and it was difficult for Conor Bradley at times in one-on-one situations.”
He added: “I don’t think we were in a huge predicament, but we could have done better.”
He went on: “We had to work harder in the second half. We had more possession, but the outside pressure wasn’t enough.”
He concluded: “It’s about consistency and perseverance. Now we’ll go home, maintain our fitness, and prepare for a strong start afterward. We’ll never give up. It’s November, and we’re ready for a long season and a big challenge.”
Match Statistics
After Haaland’s missed penalty, Opta pointed out that City have missed four of their last five penalties against Liverpool.
The Norwegian striker became the first player to miss a penalty and then score in a Premier League match since doing so against Sheffield United in August 2023.
Since the start of the 2023-24 season, no goalkeeper in Europe’s top five leagues has saved more penalties than Mamardashvili, with six.
Haaland has reached 14 goals in 11 Premier League appearances this season, the second-highest scoring record for a player in the first 11 rounds of the competition’s history.
Ironically, Haaland himself holds the record, which he set in the 2022-23 season when he scored 17 goals in the same period.
Squawka added that Liverpool conceded two goals in the first half of a Premier League match against Manchester City for the first time since April 2022.
Remarkably, Manchester City have won their last 72 Premier League matches in which they led by two goals at halftime, while Liverpool have lost their last 24 matches in which they trailed by two goals at halftime.
Bernardo Silva has now provided 48 assists in the Premier League, more than Sergio Aguero (47), although the Argentine is City’s all-time leading scorer.
Silva thus became the third-highest assist provider in Manchester City’s Premier League history, behind Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva.
According to Opta, Doku became the first player to score, win 10 or more duels, complete 7 successful dribbles, create 3+ chances, and have 3+ shots on target in a Premier League match since Hazard achieved the feat for Chelsea against West Ham in April 2019.
