"This lad has been out of sorts for a while now" – BBC pundit believes 28-year-old Liverpool star's confidence has returned after Southampton win

Former Tottenham Hotspur striker Garth Crooks has lavished praise on Liverpool star Andy Robertson for regaining his form during his team's recent 3-1 Premier League win over Southampton.

The Reds climbed to sixth spot in the 2022-23 Premier League standings with a comfortable home victory on Saturday (12 November). Roberto Firmino opened the scoring while Darwin Nunez bagged a brace for the Reds. Che Adams got on the scoresheet for the visitors.

Robertson, 28, helped his team register their sixth Premier League victory of the season with two assists in the first half. He also completed 50 passes, created six chances, completed five crosses, made four recoveries, and registered one clearance during the contest.

In his Team of the Week column for BBC, Crooks highlighted how Robertson bounced back into form against the Saints. He wrote:

"This lad has been out of sorts for a while now – for some reason he's certainly not been himself. Against a Southampton side who seemed to respond to the arrival of new boss Nathan Jones, Andy Robertson looked like his confidence had returned."

Lauding the former Hull City defender, Crooks added:

"When Robertson is on his game there isn't a better left-back in the country. He produced two excellent assists, his first for Roberto Firmino and his second for Darwin Nunez. With Scotland out of the World Cup, I'm not entirely sure Robertson will relish twiddling his thumbs for a month having got his form back."

An offensive left-back renowned for his crossing and work rate, Robertson recently drew level with Everton legend Leighton Baines for most Premier League assists for a defender. He has reached 53 assists in 230 top-flight appearances – 190 fewer games than Baines.

Robertson, who has helped the Reds lift seven trophies since arriving in 2017, has laid out seven assists in 16 appearances across all competitions for Liverpool in the ongoing campaign.

James Milner heaps praise on new Liverpool partnership involving Andy Robertson

Speaking after his team's recent 3-1 win over Southampton, Liverpool midfielder James Milner lauded the growing partnership between Darwin Nunez and Andy Robertson. He said (via Echo):

"They're getting that understanding and it's great that Darwin is banging those goals in. He has got everything so it's pleasing for him to get the goals. And Robbo, we know how much he loves an assist as well so it’s important that he keeps getting those."

Nunez, who arrived from Benfica for an initial fee of £64 million in June, has been in fine form of late. He has registered nine goals and two assists in just 941 minutes of action this campaign for Liverpool.