Jermaine Pennant believes Liverpool’s loss to Brentford proves how badly they need ‘brilliant’ star back
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Nothing seems to be going right for Liverpool at this moment in time.Four consecutive Premier League losses is not something Reds fans would have thought they would experience this season, but that is the reality for them so early on in the campaign.Performances are very poor and results just are not going their way, with Arne Slot under a little bit of pressure to put things right quickly.Join our newsletter for news & smart analysis. The problem is, there are so many issues that it is hard for the Dutchman to find a place to begin, suggesting this is not going to be a quick fix.Jermaine Pennant, however, believes that results will improve when one player returns from injury, with absence really felt during Liverpool’s defeat to Brentford.Photo by Hakan Akgun/Anadolu via Getty ImagesJermaine Pennant believes Alisson has been a bigger miss than many would have thoughtEveryone knows Alisson’s quality and how he is one of, if not the best, goalkeeper in the world, but the Reds have coped fairly well without him before.
Caoimhin Kelleher always used to do a good job in his absence, and the arrival of Giorgi Mamardashvili meant that this trend looked set to continue.This has not been the case, though, and despite the Georgian not really doing too much wrong, he is not as good as Alisson and the drop-off is clear, with the Brazilian simply ‘brilliant’. This is something Pennant believed was made obvious during the Brentford game, with the former Liverpool player believing the Brazilian would have saved at least one of the goals.“We need Alisson like you wouldn’t believe,” Pennant, who is also a Liverpool fan, told talkSPORT.“He is probably one of the biggest players, we are seeing that now.READ MORE: Arne Slot’s decision ahead of Crystal Palace game could just see him sacked if it backfires“The goal Brentford scored, the second one by Shade, Alisson would be out there already.
He’s at the edge of the box or at the penalty spot, putting that pressure on and making that goal a lot smaller.”When is Alisson back?There is no official recovery time for Alisson right now, but due to it being a hamstring issue that he is struggling with, he can be expected to be out a little while longer.Around six weeks was the estimated time scale, although there were hints that he could return for their game against Aston Villa on Saturday.However, the match the following week against Manchester City seems a little more realistic, especially as they will not want to rush him back given his history.The Brazilian has just two years left on his contract and at 33, he might not get a renewal, although he perhaps should given how important he still is to the team.