Mignolet: Liverpool Stronger Now Than When These Players Featured

Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet has had an interesting few days in the press. A few eyebrows were raised when the 28-year old Belgian made a perfectly reasonable observation that players around the league were well aware of the astronomical sums being on offer in the Chinese Super League. It was a completely innocuous comment, guilty perhaps only of excessive honesty and a lack of appreciation for the way these types of remarks elicit moans about player “loyalty.”

Well, we hope you’re ready for Part Deux of everyone’s favorite game show “Simon Says,” because Mignolet is back with more unvarnished plain speaking that is bound to push a few buttons among a certain segment of Liverpool’s supporters. Here’s how the game works: we excerpt some choice quotes from the goalkeeper, and you annotate the quotes in the comments with the modern equivalent of academic footnotes: GIFs.

We’ll start things off with Mignolet chatting about the confidence level of the squad and the increased emphasis on the collective under manager Jürgen Klopp.

We’ve got 25 players in the dressing room but in the end there are only 11 who can play, so there are always going to be a few guys disappointed each weekend.

This is borderline Captain Obvious territory, Simon, surely you can do better than that.

When I first came here it was more about certain individuals, Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge were scoring all the goals and Steven Gerrard was still playing. Now the danger comes from the strength and unity of the squad.

Much, much better from the Belgian. Talking about Suarez and Gerrard is a surefire way to elicit reactions from the same rational and level-headed supporters who have already tattooed “#FSGOUT” on their inner thighs. Also, I’m not 100% sure that Mignolet remembers that Daniel Sturridge is still a Liverpool player. What else have you got for us, Simon?

Back in the day, if you could stop Luis, you had a chance against Liverpool but now you have to face a whole team playing for each other and I guess that’s a lot harder.

Now we’re cooking. Can’t argue with that, unless of course you happen to be Bournemouth, Burnley, Swansea City or Hull City. What about the next match against Leicester City, who have been in the news for some interesting reasons of their own this week?

They are a tough team to play against and they will be physical. We have to match that physicality and then play our football. If we can mix those things together we don’t have anything to worry about.

If Liverpool can mix those things together and establish a respectable lead (say, two goals), I am absolutely sure Liverpool supporters will not be worrying at all. It’s just not what we do. In any event, that’s what Simon has given us to work with, folks, so let us know what you think in the comments.