Phil Thompson: We sold our best defender in the summer

Liverpool legend Phil Thompson believes Jürgen Klopp made a huge mistake in the summer by selling the club’s best defender Mamadou Sakho.

The former Reds’ centre-back knows a thing or two about defending and especially those who are deployed in his old position. He’s convinced the 27-year-old Sakho, who was sold to Crystal Palace in August for a fee believed to be around £26million, would be doing a better job than the likes of Dejan Lovren and Joël Matip.

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Thommo said: “I still believe we sold our best defender in the summer when Mamadou Sakho went to Crystal Palace.

“He was a warrior and a fighter. People say he looked ungainly but you knew what you got with him.

 

“I know there were issues off the field with Sakho and the manager took him out of the first team set-up.

“I was always a disciplinarian. It was one of the reasons why I was brought back into the football club by Gerard Houllier. But three months is plenty to isolate someone.”

Thommo also believes the likes of Jamie Carragher and Sami Hyypia have simply never been replaced.

“We last had real solidity back there in the Rafa Benitez era with Jamie Carragher and Sami Hyypia as a partnership,” said the 3-times European Cup winner. “Since they left we’ve not had a really solid base to work from.”