Senior Liverpool Stars Up for Chop as Jurgen Klopp Looks to Rectify Leaky Defence

Jurgen Klopp is set to perform a senior cull of his current backline in a bid to end Liverpool's horrendous defensive frailties.

The Daily Mirror has alleged that the German will wield the axe after Sunday's 4-1 thumping at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur as he goes in search of a formula to prevent his team from conceding on such a consistent basis.

The likes of Dejan Lovren and Simon Mignolet are up for the chop as Klopp seriously weighs up recalls for young stars such as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Loris Karius, and is even thinking about giving Joe Gomez an extended run at centre-half.

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Lovren was withdrawn from the Wembley pitch after just 30 minutes on Sunday following a truly terrible display, and his long-term future at Anfield has been called into question - rightly or not - due to his abject performance.

Klopp has the experienced Ragnar Klavan to call upon instead of Lovren, but the Estonia international has failed to live up to Liverpool's standards during his time on the pitch too.

That means that 20-year-old Gomez, who played alongside Joel Matip after Lovren's withdrawal, could start at centre-back for an extended period.

Gomez had been filling in at right-back in Nathaniel Clyne's continued absence, and a reshuffle at the back would lead to Alexander-Arnold being handed a recall at full-back as a result.

Mignolet, meanwhile, has only kept two clean sheets in his 10 outings so far this season and has shipped an alarming 19 goals during that time.

The Belgian goalkeeper hasn't been helped by the haphazard defending in front of him but, with pressure being put on his place in the starting lineup by Karius, the 29-year-old could find himself out of favour under Klopp again.

Karius has kept two clean sheets in the four matches he has featured in - including the 7-0 drubbing of Maribor last Wednesday - and may now be offered the chance to properly stake his claim for a place in the first-choice XI with some potentially good performances.