Jamie Carragher's Brutal Take on Milos Kerkez at Liverpool

Jamie Carragher has torn into Liverpool left-back Milos Kerkez, branding him the “Darwin Nunez of full-backs” and questioning whether the club have badly misread one of the most important positions on the pitch.

Kerkez has started Liverpool’s first two Premier League games of the season under Andoni Iraola, both ending in 2-2 draws against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest. Two points from six, four goals conceded, and the spotlight has swung straight onto the full-backs.

“Head down and run”

Speaking on The Overlap, Carragher was brutal in his assessment of the £40 million signing, accusing the 20-year-old of relying on chaos over control.

“Their understanding of the game is really, really poor. You’re watching the game and thinking, ‘Why has he done that?’” Carragher said, lumping Kerkez in with Liverpool’s other attacking full-back, Jeremie Frimpong, as part of a wider structural problem.

He then revived a comparison he first made last season.

“I described Kerkez last season – and it was his first season, maybe it was a bit harsh at the time – he's the Darwin Nunez of full-backs. It's just like ‘head down and run’, everything Kerkez does is 100 miles an hour.”

For Carragher, the issue is not talent. It’s temperament and tactical discipline. He believes Kerkez leans too heavily on raw pace and energy, without the positional intelligence required at the top level.

A gamble at left-back

Liverpool’s decision to double down on Kerkez this summer has only sharpened the criticism. Andy Robertson has moved on, another left-back departed after a loan spell, and yet the club chose not to reinvest in that area.

“They've brought in Kerkez for £40million,” Carragher continued. “He’s had his first season, it wasn't amazing, but right, you go: ‘OK, Iraola’s come in from Bournemouth, he knows him, he's still our left-back. Andy Robertson moved on, we had another left-back on loan, so we're probably not going to spend another £40million on another. He's our left-back, let him have another year’.”

That logic has left Liverpool exposed. Iraola’s high-intensity, front-foot style demands huge responsibility from his full-backs. Right now, both Kerkez and Frimpong are being accused of failing that test defensively.

Money spent, questions unanswered

The frustration stems from where Liverpool *did* choose to spend. The club poured vast sums into other areas of the squad: Bradley Barcola arrived for £106m, Jeremy Jacquet for £55m, with four more signings added to the mix. The full-back positions, though, were left untouched.

Gary Neville admitted he cannot understand it.

“The two full-backs, it was quite clear at the start of last season when you watched them for five or six matches, that defensively they weren’t going to be quite at the level to do it,” Neville said.

“I’m stunned. We talk about ‘will Arsenal regret not bringing in a forward’ – will Liverpool regret not bringing in a couple of full-backs?”

Two games into the season, that question already feels less theoretical and more urgent.