Late last night, the abysmal performances in recent time by Liverpool keeper Simon Mignolet came to a head when links to England international Jack Butland as a possible solution to the shot-stopping woes of the Merseyside club began surfacing from the Sunday People.
In a somewhat foreseeable turn of events, the Belgian glove bearer, whose residence claims an address behind the likes of Dejan Lovren and Mamadou Sakho when fit, came under fire after a gaff against Bordeaux led to the Reds conceding first in a pivotal Europa League match.
Though keepers around Europe have been sounded out in an attempt to rectify the conundrum confined to the 18-yard box, the most recent name on the shortlist is none other than Stoke City’s sanctioned handyman Jack Butland.
A much younger alternative to the former Sunderland keeper who left the North-East to pursue a more fortuitous career westward, Butland, at 22 years of age, has managed six clean sheets, including one in international play.
His record is certain to impress at first glance when peering into Klopp’s new-look Liverpool, but it appears, according to the Sunday People, that the most urgent of competition may come from across the road in the Everton camp.
All of the speculation began when an ex-Liverpool man came forward to say that Mignolet’s future with the Reds was shaky, at best. A series of unfortunate errors, spanning the better part of the 2014-15 season, and leading into the present, has enlarged what could have been described as moderate skepticism, into full-blown abandonment of belief in his keeping abilities.
Even with the counterattack from Everton, it would be difficult to take away attraction to the revitalised Liverpool side, especially with their progression into the knockout round of Europa League football. After their concession of a 97th-minute equaliser to Bournemouth on Saturday, however, it’s evident that EFC may be just as desperate to add a new keeper to their ranks, as well.
