Five things we learnt from Liverpool's pre-season tour

#2 The defence is still suspect

Virgil van Dijk is considered to be the solution to Liverpool's defensive woes

The arrival of Salah increased Liverpool's attacking threat which was evident during pre-season. However, the defence was a major letdown last season and continued in the same vein in pre-season as well.

Despite Klopp mentioning how the team were working on improving concentration and defending second balls better, errors still persist. A lot of these errors can easily be put down to the personnel.

Dejan Lovren still fails to exude confidence

The goalkeeping trio of Simon Mignolet, Loris Karis and Danny Ward gave a good account of themselves in pre-season. However, Dejan Lovren continues to be inconsistent and this affects his partners as well. Ragnar Klavan did enough to be considered a fourth-choice centre-back this season while young Joe Gomez will take some time to settle in following his injuries last season.

Thus, the defence is in dire need of a top first-team player and the Reds' pursuit of Southampton's Virgil van Dijk drags on. Alexander-Arnold is an able deputy for Clyne yet he needs to improve his defensive side. New left-back Andrew Robertson has pace and a good final ball like Alberto Moreno but is similarly suspect in defence.

Thus, Liverpool's defensive lapses persist and the need for new faces was highlighted during the past eight games.