Liverpool's defenders wouldn't have been expecting much praise after shipping three goals to Aston Villa, least of all from Jamie Carragher, long-time stalwart of a back line that was typically far less leaky. A comparison to Cristiano Ronaldo would have been even more unexpected.

Yet that's exactly what Jarell Quansah received. Carragher made the unlikely Ronaldo comparison after the final whistle when discussing the 21-year-old's towering header, which at the time it flew in looked as though it would secure the win for Liverpool.

Quansah, who has had a breakthrough season in Jürgen Klopp's final campaign, netted his first Premier League goal in some style. Rising higher than anyone else, his header looped towards the far corner, dropping in with the aid of the woodwork.

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"The young center-back who has played a lot of games this season," Carragher began, giving no indication he was about to pull out a Ronaldo comparison. "You see him here at the back post, again it’s another set piece Villa concede.

“But this header is absolutely out of this world. You see he’s trying to hold his run because of the offside trap, but he gets up so high and he’s actually ahead of the ball.

“His body position when the ball is in the air and he actually makes contact, it reminds me a little bit, I’ve seen Ronaldo score these types of headers where he gets up so early and he’s actually waiting for the ball.

“Look at his body position. Look how high his knees are off the ground, and it almost starts outside and just comes back into the top corner. It was a brilliant goal.”

Quansah actually endured a tricky start to the game, getting beaten by Ollie Watkins before Youri Tielemans turned in Aston Villa's first goal. But despite Liverpool's later capitulation, he actually recovered to impress in a defensive sense, making numerous vital blocks and other interventions.

And never mind Ronaldo, there were shades of Virgil van Dijk in how he rose to head home for Liverpool. Quansah is developing into a complete package, and looks to have a huge future ahead of him.

Liverpool.com says: All in all, it's not a personnel issue that Arne Slot will need to address in the defense — he will need to set about changing the wider mentality and tactical approach. Quansah certainly still has a prominent role to play as we look to the future.

Clearly, imitating Ronaldo from set pieces is not top of the job description. But Liverpool has long used free kicks and corners to seek marginal gains, and Carragher has rightly picked out that Quansah seems to have the technique to match his imposing physical frame. He really does have the potential to become a monster at both ends, maybe one day taking over from Van Dijk. For now, in the right set-up, it could be a formidable partnership.