Aldo's view Liverpool have a matter of hours to save their season and the clock is ticking

The clock is ticking for Liverpool as they have just 48 hours to save their season.

That might sound like a dramatic opening, but the reality is that Jurgen Klopp will not be able to keep his hopes of success alive this season if a defender - and the right defender - is not signed before tomorrow's transfer deadline.

I stated in my Sunday World columns as far back as November that Liverpool needed to have a centre-back lined up and ready to play on January 1st. The events of the last few weeks confirm I was right in that assessment.

Back then, Klopp was producing minor miracles with a team denied the services of Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez and was doing his best to cover holes in his defence with temporary plasters.

Using Fabinho at centre-back worked well, and captain Jordan Henderson also did his best when he dropped back from midfield to play in defence, However winning a title without proven defenders was always going to be an impossible task.

Klopp was trying to get Rhys Williams up to speed by giving him some game time, but the kid is not ready for first-team football and the desperate slump in form that included defeats against Southampton and Burnley may have ended Liverpool's title defence.

The Premier League title is Manchester City's to lose now, but Liverpool's impressive win at Tottenham on Thursday night confirms they can get back onto their feet and salvage this season if the right decisions are made before tomorrow's 11pm transfer deadline.

Harsh

The win at Spurs came at a cost as Joel Matip picked up yet another injury and harsh as this might sound, Liverpool may need to move on from him now.

He is a decent defender and when he is fit, he has been a great player over the last couple of years, but his body just won't stand up to the rigours of the Premier League.

Liverpool need defenders who can play three games a week if required and Matip has confirmed now that he can't fulfil that need.

I'm sure Liverpool will look to sign a defender next summer with a view to him being either first or second choice partner for Van Dijk when he is back to full fitness.

That debate is for another day as the problem now is there for all to see, with Klopp heading into Sunday's game at West Ham without a fit centre-back (and not even the injured Fabinho as back-up) against a side that will go above Liverpool if they win today.

It's far from an ideal situation and the solution will be tough to come up with.

As Klopp said in his press conference on Friday, he wouldn't be able to sign a world-class defender this month for a couple of seasons and first on that list is finances.

Some Liverpool fans have turned against the club's owners over their reluctance to sign a defender this month and back a manager who brought the Premier League title back to Anfield for the first time in three decades.

While I sympathise with their views and understand the frustrations, all of us are looking at this situation without having all the facts at our disposal.

Liverpool have lost tens of millions of pounds amid this global pandemic and it was clear that the owners didn't want to spend any money on a defender this month as a result.

We don't know how tight the bank balance is at Anfield right now and the fact that Gini Wijnaldum hasn't signed a new, long-term, contract and some other players are still waiting to sign new deals suggests there is not too much in the kitty.

Yet Matip's injury on top of the absences of Van Dijk and Gomez means the owners simply have to find a way to get a defender in now, even if it's on loan.

There comes the second part of this problem, as who is available in the final 48 hours of a mid-season transfer window?

The truth is, the players Liverpool could get now are not the ones they would have been pushing for in normal circumstances. But this is a sporting emergency and it needs to be addressed urgently.

Win

I feel Manchester City are too far ahead at the top of the Premier League now and will not let that slip, meaning the Champions League is Liverpool's best hope of success.

They could get through the last-16 tie against RB Leipzig, but if they were to get Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals and didn't have any centre-back to call upon, it would be game over.

There are suggestions that Van Dijk could make a comeback in the final weeks of the season and the aim has to be to make sure Liverpool still have something to play for if that happens.

A top four finish is a must for Liverpool, but I fear that will be far from assured if they don't get a defender in who can make a difference ahead of the deadline.

So this really is the moment for Liverpool's transfer decision-makers to come up with the signing to give Klopp a chance to get through the final few months of this season.

What we saw from Liverpool at Tottenham was a side emerging from their slump and looking like they may be ready to light the burners again.

All of that hope will be extinguished if a centre-back is not signed in double quick time, with Liverpool fans holding their breath to see what happens next.

Download the Sunday World app

Now download the free app for all the latest Sunday World News, Crime, Irish Showbiz and Sport. Available on Apple and Android devices

Sunday World