John Giles: Liverpool's defensive issues down to Jurgen Klopp

Former RTE Sport pundit John Giles feels Liverpool won't improve their defensive record even if they recruit quality defenders in the future. The Merseyside outfit have conceded just once at Anfield this season, but their away form has been woeful with 16 goals allowed in the space of just six matches.

Writing in his column for the Irish Independent, the Leeds United great insisted that the issues with the Reds backline lie are directly associated with Jurgen Klopp's training methods, he said: "I've reached the conclusion that if Jurgen Klopp found four new defenders tomorrow, all with gifted with great ability, that Liverpool would still leak goals.

"Put simply, Klopp cannot organise his defence and over the time he has been in charge at Anfield, I've seen enough to tell me that bad defenders are not the problem. Bad defending is the problem and there's a big difference. I've reached the conclusion that if Jurgen Klopp found four new defenders tomorrow, all with gifted with great ability, that Liverpool would still leak goals."

The likes of Marten Skrtel and Mamadou Sakho have been replaced by the likes of Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan of late, and this has brought a sense of frustration among the club's faithful, who would rather see world-class recruits at Anfield. Liverpool have made the best use of their attack to nullify any threat to their backline at home, but they have struggled to impose themselves a similar way on the road as evidenced by their 3-3 Champions League draw at Sevilla, where they should have won leading 3-0 at half-time.

The Merseyside giants face off against Chelsea in Saturday's late Premier League kick-off, and the emphasis will once again be on the attacking side of their play as they look to extend their three-match winning streak in the top-flight. The game sees Mohamed Salah take on the Blues for the first time since his permanent exit and the Egypt international will surely want to send a message to his former employers by making a match-winning impact for the Reds.