Neil Mellor has offered a passionate defense of a Liverpool player who came under criticism following Wednesday night’s 3-3 draw with Newcastle.
Caoimhin Kelleher was considered negligent by many. Pan And Fabian Schar’s misjudgment that could have resulted in a 90th-minute equalizer at St James’ Park allowed the ball to drift away from him and into the path of a Swiss defender, the pundits said.
Speaking to The Overlap, Ian Wright said the Ireland international had been through a ‘nightmare’ and the 26-year-old had unfortunately received some scathing comments on social media.
Mellor defends the ‘great’ Kelleher.
But Mellor jumped to Liverpool’s goalkeeper’s defense by highlighting the vital save he made early in the game and pointing out how good he has been in covering Alisson Becker over the past two months.
Former Reds striker Posted in This morning: “Kelleher has been outstanding for Liverpool. Yes, he made a mistake last night that resulted in a late equalizer, but don’t forget that. He made a brilliant save in the 38th minute to deny Newcastle a 2-0 lead! If it had gone in we would have won nothing in the game. “Best goalkeeper.”
Kelleher has been outstanding for Liverpool. Yes, he made a mistake and equalized late last night, but don’t forget…
He made a brilliant save in the 38th minute to deny Newcastle a 2-0 lead! If that had happened we would have won nothing from the game.
Best goalkeeper#Kelleher #LFC pic.twitter.com/iSsRFhlipT
— Neil Mellor (@NeilMellor33) December 5, 2024
Mellor is right. Kelleher was great throughout.
We couldn’t agree more with Mellor here. Kelleher’s continued outstanding performance since October should not be tarnished by one poor decision.
The former Liverpool forward was also right to call out Anthony Gordon’s first-half save after the Newcastle winger pick-pocketed Joe Gomez. It came just three minutes after Alexander Isaac broke the deadlock.
If the Reds had fallen 2-0 down to score a quick goal just before the break the game would have looked somewhat different and even the best goalkeepers in the world make mistakes from time to time.
Unfortunately for Kelleher, Arne Slot has declared that Alisson will re-establish himself in the starting XI once he is fully fit, which is expected to be before the end of this month.
We hope the Liverpool manager will keep his faith in the Irishman in Saturday’s Merseyside derby and not ignore the excellent saves the 26-year-old has produced throughout the season so far. Lots of true Reds fans His contribution has not been forgotten In recent weeks.
