Jurgen Klopp yet to have complete faith in Kostas Tsimikas this season
Greek international left back Kostas Tsimikas is yet to make his debut for Liverpool since completing his £11.7 million switch from Greek giants Olympiakos. The 24-year-old was signed to provide a competitive back-up for the Reds’ first-choice left back Andy Robertson back in August, just days after Liverpool's bid for Norwich City’s Northern Ireland international full back Jamal Lewis was declined.
Although Tsimikas will not admit his frustrations publicly, it must be somewhat disappointing to have missed out on making a first-team appearance, especially considering Robertson’s battles with injuries and fitness of late.
Robertson has played the most games for the Reds in the English Premier League (EPL) so far this season. Klopp himself said that the signing of Tsimikas would provide him with a “proper option” to rest Robertson, given his insistence that playing over 50 games a season for his full backs would “limit their careers”.
Tsimikas unable to feature despite injury blows to Gomez, van Dijk and Robertson
Fellow defender Joe Gomez also suffered a nasty injury on international duty with England, with this season’s truncated and intense schedule taking its toll on a Liverpool squad that’s primed to play high-intensity football week-in, week-out.
Even homegrown youngster Neco Williams was given a chance to impress in the absence of Trent Alexander-Arnold. So why has Tsimikas yet to taste EPL action in the four-months since his Anfield arrival?
One of the main reasons surely must be trust. Klopp places significant emphasis in being able to trust his players to execute his unique game plan. Tsimikas’ Champions League performance for Liverpool in their 2-0 defeat to Atalanta may have alarmed Klopp. The German was regularly pictured berating Tsimikas and coaching him throughout, before replacing him with Andy Robertson with half an hour remaining.
Robertson was a fitness doubt prior to Liverpool’s crunch group stage game with Ajax a few weeks later, but Klopp opted to roll the dice and play the Scotsman instead of Tsimikas.
Klopp’s infamous adaptation regime
It’s fair to say that Klopp gives most of his new signings several months of adaptation to his style of play before letting them loose. You only have to look at Japanese midfielder Minamino, who has been a prime example of taking ‘baby steps’ into the first-team picture since his arrival from Red Bull Salzburg. The 25-year-old has by no means scaled the heights of his time in Austria yet, but by the same token he is experienced at playing the high-intensity football that Jurgen Klopp craves.
The Reds also have a fight on their hands to retain the EPL
The pressure of trying to win back-to-back EPL titles is another factor for Tsimikas' game time. The Reds appear to be in a major battle for the Championship this time around, with Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham looking like the ‘real deal’ in 2020/21. The leading EPL tipsters like Ryan Elliott correctly predicted that Spurs would keep a clean sheet against arch-rivals Arsenal in their recent North London derby. With the best defensive record in the league and a front-line partnership of Son and Kane reaching their peak, Klopp can ill-afford to experiment too much with his starting XI right now.
The need for solid performances week on week is why the likes of seasoned veterans like James Milner may even come into Klopp’s thoughts for left back selection whenever Robertson is unavailable. Although Klopp described Tsimikas as a player with the “attitude to win and to compete”, his involvement in Liverpool’s defeat in Atalanta has seemingly left a minor scar for Klopp and Tsimikas to overcome.
Tsimikas should not take being shunned too personally just yet. Aside from Minamino, Klopp has also spent many months bedding in other new signings, such as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabino. Even Andy Robertson was by no means a first-team regular following his signing from Hull City. Klopp demands perfection from every inch of the field and that’s why he favours selecting players that have been there and done it before in a Liverpool shirt. Kostas’ time will come at Anfield. It’s a matter of when, not if.
