LIVERPOOL’s manager Brendan Rodgers confirmed that he is targeting a new goalkeeper in January, while he insisted Simon Mignolet’s problems stem from having the ball at his feet.
Mignolet has kept only four clean sheets in 25 appearances this season and was dropped for an “indefinite period,” with reserve Brad Jones called up in recent games before getting injured
Rodgers claims that Mignolet — who signed for nine million pounds in 2013 — needs to work on his footwork and his concentration and that a new goalkeeper will be on the agenda in this window as Danny Ward, the Wales under-21 international, will be on the bench for the game against Sunderland.
“I think we need a goalkeeper of some sort, it’s just depending on how long Brad Jones is going to be out injured,” Rodgers said. “We are obviously down and have got two young inexperienced keepers behind Simon, who is only just back in the team, so we need to assess that.
“Simon was at the time we were watching him, and still is, a wonderful shot-stopper. He makes big saves but the adaptation for him is coming into a big team where you are not having to make as many saves and therefore concentration is important and you probably have more touches of the ball with your feet than what he might have expected.
“He has come in here under massive expectation to replace a player who was outstanding for Liverpool for seven or eight years. He is trying to develop areas of his game. He knows he needs to improve with his feet and he is working hard on that on a daily basis. He is analysing the games and working with the coach and doing everything he can to be the best he can be.”
Mignolet made over 100 appearances for Sunderland before joining Liverpool, but despite his Premier League experience, Rodgers claims that he needs to improve.
“Everyone can improve. If you bring in an outfield player or a goalkeeper they can always look to improve their touch or their ideas,” he said. “It was a new way of working for Simon and for him it was about understanding how a big team and a big club plays, which is to dominate the ball.
“In my time of working with the players they understand that but it doesn’t always happen straight away, sometimes it can take that wee bit of time.”
