Liverpool are still reeling from the departure of Sadio Mane and Jurgen Klopp made a mistake by selling him according to Peter Crouch and Rio Ferdinand.
The Reds have taken just half of the points available to them after six games played so far this term and after a goalless draw in the Merseyside derby away at Everton, it appears as if Liverpool are missing the presence of a former favourite in Mane.
At Goodison Park, the Reds looked blunt at times in attack and while the woodwork was struck on multiple occasions, clear-cut goal-scoring opportunities were few and far between against the Toffees. Both Crouch and Ferdinand were in attendance as part of BT Sport's coverage of the clash and revealed what they thought the problem was.
"So many times Mane has come up trumps in these games where it's tight, backs against the wall and they're missing him. Hindsight's a wonderful thing, [Darwin] Nunez will come good I'm sure," Crouch explained.
Marquee summer signing Nunez is yet to come close to replicating the kind of heights Mane reached so often in a Liverpool shirt, with a debut goal swiftly followed by a red card at home against Crystal Palace. He failed to make much of an impact against the Reds' neighbours on Saturday afternoon.
Responding to Crouch's assessment of the situation, Ferdinand added: "That's a great point. Those penetrating runs from out to in to support the centre-forward, that's a big threat they aren't getting as much or the balls not being played or is it they're not running as much? There are a few things to work out but the midfield area is the critical area."
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Midfield is a recognised problem point by Klopp, who oversaw the loan signing of Brazilian international Arthur on deadline day to try and compensate for the number of crocked midfield options at the club.
Adding more goals to the side in the wake of Mane's departure is not something many Reds fans thought they would have to contend with given the arrival of Nunez from Benfica.
Their remarkable nine-goal haul at home to Bournemouth last week slightly skewers the overall image when trying to analyse Liverpool's form in front of goal so far this season. Apart from that rampant display, Klopp's side have only notched a relatively feeble five goals in the other five games.
Usual goal-getter Mohamed Salah looked a shadow of his usual self against Everton, while Luiz Diaz failed to inflict any damage on the Toffees either.
