There’s no easy way to say it, but it’s starting to feel like every time Andy Robertson comes on or starts, Liverpool look shakier down his flank. You can see why people want to defend him too. He’s been one of the best servants we’ve had in the Premier League era, a proper all-timer in the conversation for our best XI. That’s exactly what makes this so uncomfortable to watch.
What does my head in a bit is the way it’s sometimes framed by pundits and commentators, like he’s still the safer option. To my eyes, he often looks more “in control” in the traditional sense, more familiar in his positioning, but then the winger still ends up with time and space. And when that happens, someone tucks one away and we all sort of shrug it off.
Standing off is becoming the tell
The pattern feels pretty clear: because he can’t trust the recovery pace anymore, he’s started standing off people. That might stop him getting spun in behind, but it hands the attacker exactly what they want at this level: a yard to set, a clean angle to cross, or a shot without pressure. Good wide players don’t need an invitation.
It’s the bit that makes you wince. Robertson’s whole game at his peak was built on legs, repetition, intensity, turning duels into a running contest and usually winning it. When that drops even half a step, everything else gets exposed.
Why the “calmer” option can still cost you
There’s also this odd tendency for one good moment to wipe away the bigger picture. An assist gets remembered, the full 90 doesn’t. The example that sticks in my mind is Frankfurt: he assisted Ekitike and people took it as proof he should be playing, while glossing over the goal coming from him standing off and letting a man shoot from distance.
Same idea with the Kerkez debate. Kerkez can look like chaos at times, like it’s always last-ditch, but he often does enough to keep top wingers quieter than you’d think. People say Semenyo gave him a tough time, and maybe he did, but the key thing is he didn’t get the decisive joy while Kerkez was on.
Contract sentiment versus squad reality
The Barnsley one was grim viewing as well. You can hammer Szoboszlai for his part in the goal, fair enough, but the bigger question was why he was the one flying past our left-back to track a runner down our left in the first place. That’s the warning light: the legs have gone and the whole side has to compensate.
And that’s why the contract talk matters. If Robertson stays, it has to be on terms that reflect the role: a dressing-room elder, a steady head, minutes managed properly. Like the late-stage pros you see elsewhere who accept the squad role. But starting Premier League games every week? It feels like asking for trouble.
If the club think Owen Beck or Callum Scanlon can step up, give them a real runway. If not, move accordingly and sign a proper back-up left-back. Because the harsh truth is Father Time doesn’t negotiate, and the kindest thing might be letting Robertson bow out as the legend he already is.
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