Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas is on borrowed time at Liverpool, and Andoni Iraola knows it.
Liverpool played out a goalless home draw against Fulham on Saturday, and they were a little fortunate to even take a point.
The Reds were flat for much of the game, and it must be said, very few players came away from the performance with anything to shout about. Fulham had the better of the chances throughout, and they were very unlucky not to score in the first half, in particular, although admittedly their best chance came from an Alisson Becker mistake that led to a goal-line clearance.
Liverpool are painfully open, regularly getting caught on the break and left scrambling. At times, their positioning is baffling. With around 10 minutes on the clock, a simple switch ball caught them unawares. At the time of the switched pass, there wasn't a single Liverpool player standing on the far half of pitch, not even the right-back on that side, Ronald Araujo, who had to scramble to get back into position, but a better ball and first-time control would have had the Reds in big trouble.
Tsimikas is on borrowed time at Anfield
So, let's be clear, as a collective, Liverpool were poor, but Tsimikas put in the worst performance of the lot. The Greece international has long been thought of as a squad player, hence he spent last season on loan at Roma, but this game made it painfully obvious that a replacement is going to have to be found in January.
Tsimikas stats vs Fulham
Aerial duels won: 0
Pass success: 64.5%
Total tackles: 1
Interceptions: 1
Fouls: 3
It was an absolute miracle that Tsimikas wasn't booked. Oscar Bobb beat him over and over again, leading to Tsimikas throwing his opponent to the floor or tripping him, and he did it twice in the space of a few minutes just before half-time, and still wasn't booked.
The 30-year-old was so slow and sluggish that it looked as though a simple side-step from Bobb would leave him with two broken angles, and that is barely an exaggeration. The Greek defender couldn't even turn in time to chase Bobb, getting caught with his body flat to his man, and having to foul or play physical as his only resort.
Kostas Tsimikas
The performance was so bad that Iraola dragged Tsimikas off at half-time, replacing him with Milos Kerkez, and it would be a major surprise if Tsimikas starts again any time soon. With all due respect to Fulham and Bobb, who is a very good player, if this happens against the Cottagers, what is going to happen against some of the best wingers in the league? It's game over for Tsimikas at Anfield, even if he can't actually be replaced until January.
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