There were positives to be taken from Liverpool's draw with Manchester City at the weekend, a game they really should have won - But the underlining negative came in the early minutes, when Brazilian midfielder Lucas limped off.
Lucas has come along way since the days when he struggled to win over the Liverpool support. He is now seen as a key player, and Liverpool really struggled when he was ruled out last Autumn for the whole season.
The impact he had on the team was really shown by the fact he completed the most successful tackles of any Liverpool player well into April, despite the fact he did not play after November. Clearly Kenny Dalglish had not found any body to fill the void, and Jay Spearing was not up to the task.
Brendan Rodgers is unlikely to make the same mistake. Jay Spearing is being lined up for a loan move down to the Championship, with several clubs interested.
Liverpool do have several midfield options they can hope to fill the void, and they have less than 48 hours to make their move in the transfer market - If they feel the need to.
Brendan Rodgers confirmed yesterday that Lucas is out for 'two to three months' with a thigh injury, and that is barring any setbacks.
The manager has so far insisted the club do not need to go and make a new signing, after all central midfield is where Liverpool are well stocked.
Options include Steven Gerrard, Jordan Henderson, Joe Allen, Jonjo Shelvey, Nuri Sahin, and gulp, Charlie Adam.
Between those six, Liverpool have a host of possibilities, and both Sahin and Allen are capable of playing in the holding role, even though their best qualities are based on their passing and possession play, rather than tackling and breaking up play.
The two new additions - the former of which is yet to make an appearance for the club- should give fans confidence they might get by without the Brazilian until his return.
They will face a big test against Arsenal at the weekend, when Lucas would have been specially deployed to keep Santi Cazorla quiet.
If only Liverpool still had Javier Mascherano available. Perhaps Rodgers should get on the phone to Barcelona...
Can Sahin and Allen fill in for Lucas adequately? Let us know what you think.
image: © Ben Sutherland
Dan Coombs
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Dan Coombs is a writer who is keen to embrace the internet revolution. He first started writing for us in June 2011 and commenced his new role as Sports Editor in February 2012.
As a trained journalist he has met famous faces from Mr T to Boris Johnson. He once featured in an England World Cup music video too, but it did not make the charts.
He grew up wanting to be a Formula 1 driver, but it looks like this dream has passed him by. Instead, he hopes you enjoy reading his writing on our site, as we seek to debate the day's sporting hot topics.
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