Dejan Lovren Talks Liverpool Defensive Crisis and Mohamed Salah Future

Liverpool could really use Dejan Lovren about now, but after a final season that saw him stuck as fourth choice in the pecking order, it was decided it would be best for all if the veteran centre half moved on.

Now playing every week as Zenit St. Petersburg’s captain, Lovren says he has no regrets about leaving—even if watching how the 2020-21 season has unfolded, he knows he would have played a lot had he stayed.

“No, I don’t think so,” Lovren told TalkSport when asked if he had regrets about leaving the Reds. “I was there for six years, and for four-and-a-half years it was a really good time but for the last year-and-a-half it was not.

“Did they use me as much as I wanted? No. But could I accept it? Yes, I accepted it. But it was not an easy time for me. But I’m not regretting going away, I am playing now regularly every week again and I’m captain.”

He may be gone from the club, but he’s still keeping close tabs on Liverpool and his former teammates—and has been impressed by how they’ve reacted to a difficult season, even if the results haven’t always been there.

“I’m sad to see all the defenders injured at the moment,” he added. “But I think Fabinho and Hendo did a great job. They are midfield players and it’s quite hard to play in this kind of position and they did it quite well.

“It’s not the same when you have Van Dijk or Joe Gomez or Matip there. It will be tough this season but they have still a lot of games, they have a lot to prove. Nothing is over, and for the top four everything is possible.”

He’s also, perhaps unsurprisingly, keeping in touch with Mohamed Salah, the player he was closest to at Liverpool—and in Salah’s case, Lovren thinks there’s still a lot of Liverpool story to write. Maybe five or six years worth.

“Mo is committed,” he added. “Not just for Liverpool but for the fans and for himself. There needs to be love from both. I see now they have it, so why not? Mo is at the best age, so why not stay another four, five, six years?”