As Jamie Carragher sat watching Liverpool get ripped apart by Wolves on Saturday, he could only dream of seeing a defender like Lisandro Martinez turning out in the red of his former side, rather than that of Manchester United.
Jurgen Klopp's side have endured one of their most dismal seasons since the German arrived in 2015 with seven defeats leaving them 10th in the Premier League table and so far from the top-four picture that Twitter's decision to crop photos again has eliminated them completely.
At Molineux on Saturday, Liverpool dominated both possession and territory but saw any chance of victory thwarted by a calamitous defensive performance from Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, the former scoring an early own-goal while the latter was at least partially at fault for all three concessions.
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Unable to call on the experience of Virgil van Dijk or the quality of Ibrahima Konate, Klopp's third and fourth-choice defenders crumbled. Carragher called it 'shambolic' but even that might have been a little kind.
He tweeted: "It’s not too difficult to play centre back next to the leader of the back four, judge CBs when they have to lead themselves. Shambolic"
Liverpool could do with a leader at the back and few come better than Martinez, the Argentinian a standout player this season as Erik ten Hag's side cement their place in the top-four and continue to fight on all four fronts. The irony is not missed in remembering that Carragher himself, following United's own shambolic defeat against Brentford in August, proclaimed that former Ajax sensation 'cannot play' at centre-back in English football.
"Now, we should never judge managers or players too early, but I'm convinced this can't work because the size of him playing in a back four," Carragher told Sky Sports. "Maybe he could go left-back, maybe he could play in a back three, but in a back four, he cannot play there in the Premier League."
It says plenty for the 25-year-old that one of his best performances in red came in the 3-0 Carabao Cup win at Nottingham Forest last month when alongside Victor Lindelof. In that moment Martinez morphed from partner to leader, separated from the more experienced Raphael Varane and, despite being younger than the 28-year-old Lindelof, very much the senior in terms of status.
And again on Saturday - this time alongside Varane - Martinez was rock-solid, nullifying the height advantage that would supposedly make his time in M16 a failure. The £57million man was once again voted Player of The Match, his battling performance after Casemiro's red card keeping Patrick Vieira's side from ever truly threatening a comeback.
A man down and holding a one-goal lead following Jeffrey Schlupp's finish, Martinez personified the fight in Ten Hag's side by throwing his body in front just about everything. The man nicknamed 'The Butcher' was often the one dragging his back-line forward and barking orders.
Ten Hag didn't just bring Martinez in because he was left-footed or used to the Dutchman's exacting style, he brought him in because as of last summer, United lacked leaders. Harry Maguire was - and still is - club captain, but the much-maligned England defender had too much focus on his own performances before improving the form of those around him. Lindelof has long played a supporting role and showed no signs of transcending that.
If recent reports are to be believed, Ten Hag could sanction the sale of several former first-team regulars, including current captain Maguire. Bruno Fernandes has taken the mantle for much of this campaign, but should the position come up for grabs in the summer, Martinez could well be a viable long-term option.
Captain or not, Ten Hag has another leader in Martinez. Sir Alex Ferguson always spoke of his title-challenging teams containing 11 captains, an ideology echoed by the Dutchman and finally coming to fruition under his tenure.
Carragher and Liverpool couldn't do with a few more at Anfield.
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