Jurgen Klopp’s lamentable treatment of Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren shows a worrying lack of leadership

As a dejected Dejan Lovren wandered off the Wembley pitch after 31 minutes on Sunday it would take a hard-hearted person (or a Manchester United fan) not to sympathise with the Croatian. He’d been pulled from pillar-to-post by Spurs’ frontline culminating in the misjudgement of two headers which cost Liverpool goals.

It almost seemed like an act of mercy from manager Jurgen Klopp, removing him from the firing line before it got any worse. However dig a little deeper and it seems like the ex-Southampton player is actually the scapegoat Klopp is using to hide his, and Liverpool’s systemic failings.

Lovren signed for Liverpool in the summer of 2014 for a fee of £20m, part of the player recruitment splurge financed by Luis Suarez’s £75m move to Barcelona. He had been at the Saints for one season, enjoying a stellar year under the tutelage of Mauricio Pochettino following an £8.5m move from Lyon.

At the Stade Gerland his form was patchy and the French giants were happy to move him on. On the south coast, however, he was a revelation and new manager Ronald Koeman was a reluctant seller. Then Reds boss Brendan Rodgers said of Lovren “This is a very important signing for us”, and hailed him as “The new Jamie Carragher”

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Since his arrival on Merseyside Lovren has become the scapegoat for Liverpool’s myriad defensive issues. But this was sadly always going to be the case.

Lovren is functional and not much else. He thrives when he’s the junior partner in a defence, when he is told what to do, where to stand and is surrounded by superior players.

The Dejan Lovren Liverpool purchased from Southampton was partnered by Jose Fonte. He was protected by the central midfield block of Victor Wanyama, who has moved onto Spurs and the Champions League, and Morgan Schneiderlin whose outstanding form led to a move to Manchester United.

Finally, Mauricio Pochettino built a system where every single player knew their role to the finest detail. Liverpool couldn’t be further from the case. And they expect the same player they bought from Southampton?

What Liverpool have got is what Lovren is, a functional player with a predilection for catastrophic mistakes. Liverpool’s huge fan base means there is no place to hide for Lovren, who has become a one-man social media meme.

Which moves us, finally, back to Klopp. Fast-forward to this summer and Liverpool’s laughable pursuit of Virgil van Dijk. No doubt the five-time European Cup winners needed a new central defender so going and buying one is a good idea. No faulting that logic. If you want Van Dijk, go and speak to Southampton and get him in the traditional fashion. But Liverpool didn’t do that, they went to the player, annoyed Southampton by not making a bid and the deal didn’t happen, collecting an FA reprimand, apologising to the Saints to avoid a fine.

But Liverpool had a back-up transfer right? That would be prudent. Wrong. They were then left with Lovren, Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan, plus Joe Gomez who was on the the way back from a serious injury. Less than ideal.

So Lovren continues to play, and play with pain killing injections thanks to persistent back and Achilles injuries which Croatia refuse to let him play on but Klopp seems to have no problem putting him through. The Croatian is effectively playing injured because Liverpool made a mess of their summer transfer business and Klopp doesn’t trust Klavan, who he signed .

Lovren is having a shocking time, playing badly and costing Liverpool goals, but think about the all the ways you can contribute to a player playing badly and Liverpool have done it.

Which brings us to Klopp’s quite frankly disgraceful treatment of Lovren this weekend. Rather than protect him after the game, thank him for playing hurt, or just tell the press ‘it was my fault, I played him and he wasn’t fit and it’s on me’. That would have taken the pressure off Lovren.

What Klopp did was say that ‘I would have done better on the pitch’. He is hanging his own player out to dry to cover his own misjudgements. Poor recruitment in that position, a defence which hasn’t improved since he arrived and a system which offers the central defenders no protection at all.

It’s easy to forget, but footballers are human and need man-management and in this regard Klopp has failed Lovren miserably. The German’s happy-go-lucky persona is great for the press but Lovren may not see his boss in the same way anymore and that won’t help the player or Liverpool.