Bruce Grobbelaar says Liverpool lead title race DESPITE Simon Mignolet's flaws
Apr 17, 2014 18:29 By John Cross
Legendary Anfield goalkeeper says his former club should not be top of the league when the Belgian has let in 42 goals
Bruce Grobbelaar fears Simon Mignolet is Liverpool’s weak link as they chase a first championship in 24 years.
Liverpool legend Grobbelaar believes there are big flaws in Mignolet’s game and says he cannot be compared to his Chelsea title-race rival Petr Cech.
Grobbelaar points to the fact that Mignolet has let in 42 goals and Cech just 24, and claimed Liverpool “should not be top of the league” with such a bad defensive record.
Mignolet, 26, moved to Anfield last summer from Sunderland for £9m but has dropped a string of clangers which have left Grobbelaar insisting he must improve his game.
Grobbelaar, in an interview to promote the Prostate Cancer UK charity, said: “Mignolet is a good shot-stopper, but by no means the best all-round keeper.
“A good keeper should be easy on his feet, plays out from the back and commands himself in the penalty box.
“A keeper should never be beaten – as he has been – by a header from three yards out. The keeper coach has to work him harder and he can improve a lot, of course he can.
“Another point is his positioning on free-kicks. His starting position is not right. The team and the defence is too far back for the keeper. They’re on top of him. He’s not commanding enough.
“Another reason I look at Mignolet is the number of goals he’s conceded. Any team which concedes that number of goals should not be top of the league.
“You compare that to the number of goals Petr Cech has conceded at Chelsea and that tells you the difference. Any good team starts from the back.”
Mignolet was a big gamble by the Reds' boss Brendan Rodgers as he was brought in to replace Pepe Reina who went to Napoli on a season long loan.
The Belgian has had some good games but some high profile errors – like the gaffe at Manchester City which came during a bad spell at Christmas – have raised some doubts and questions about his form.
European Cup winner Grobbelaar, who won the title six times with Liverpool, believes Liverpool can win the Premier League this season thanks to their strike force.
Grobbelaar believes Luis Suarez, Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling are the best in the Premier League and will take some stopping.
“Can they win the league?” asked Grobbelaar. “Yes. Most definitely, yes. I was asked back in November and I said then they could win it and everybody laughed.
“But they’re not laughing now. They’re playing great football. This forward line – Suarez, Sturridge and Sterling – is fantastic. They’ve got pace, they’re great to watch.
"They do let in too many goals. But they can definitely win it.”
Grobbelaar believes the standard of keepers is high, but was dismissive of Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris.
He added: “Generally, in the Premier League, Ben Foster has been brilliant. I would play Brad Friedel more at Tottenham as I’m not a fan of Hugo Lloris at all. He’s not a full bag of tricks. De Gea has been brilliant at times.
“The other one I like is Tim Krul. But, once again, there’s lots of foreign keepers in there which is a shame for English keepers coming through. There’s not enough and you have to look to foreign keepers.”
* Bruce Grobbelaar is a big supporter of Men United. He is helping the bid to beat Prostate Cancer. Visit menunited.prostatecanceruk.org for info.
Apr 17, 2014 18:29 By John Cross
Legendary Anfield goalkeeper says his former club should not be top of the league when the Belgian has let in 42 goals
Bruce Grobbelaar fears Simon Mignolet is Liverpool’s weak link as they chase a first championship in 24 years.
Liverpool legend Grobbelaar believes there are big flaws in Mignolet’s game and says he cannot be compared to his Chelsea title-race rival Petr Cech.
Grobbelaar points to the fact that Mignolet has let in 42 goals and Cech just 24, and claimed Liverpool “should not be top of the league” with such a bad defensive record.
Mignolet, 26, moved to Anfield last summer from Sunderland for £9m but has dropped a string of clangers which have left Grobbelaar insisting he must improve his game.
Grobbelaar, in an interview to promote the Prostate Cancer UK charity, said: “Mignolet is a good shot-stopper, but by no means the best all-round keeper.
“A good keeper should be easy on his feet, plays out from the back and commands himself in the penalty box.
“A keeper should never be beaten – as he has been – by a header from three yards out. The keeper coach has to work him harder and he can improve a lot, of course he can.
“Another point is his positioning on free-kicks. His starting position is not right. The team and the defence is too far back for the keeper. They’re on top of him. He’s not commanding enough.
“Another reason I look at Mignolet is the number of goals he’s conceded. Any team which concedes that number of goals should not be top of the league.
“You compare that to the number of goals Petr Cech has conceded at Chelsea and that tells you the difference. Any good team starts from the back.”
Mignolet was a big gamble by the Reds' boss Brendan Rodgers as he was brought in to replace Pepe Reina who went to Napoli on a season long loan.
The Belgian has had some good games but some high profile errors – like the gaffe at Manchester City which came during a bad spell at Christmas – have raised some doubts and questions about his form.
European Cup winner Grobbelaar, who won the title six times with Liverpool, believes Liverpool can win the Premier League this season thanks to their strike force.
Grobbelaar believes Luis Suarez, Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling are the best in the Premier League and will take some stopping.
“Can they win the league?” asked Grobbelaar. “Yes. Most definitely, yes. I was asked back in November and I said then they could win it and everybody laughed.
“But they’re not laughing now. They’re playing great football. This forward line – Suarez, Sturridge and Sterling – is fantastic. They’ve got pace, they’re great to watch.
"They do let in too many goals. But they can definitely win it.”
Grobbelaar believes the standard of keepers is high, but was dismissive of Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris.
He added: “Generally, in the Premier League, Ben Foster has been brilliant. I would play Brad Friedel more at Tottenham as I’m not a fan of Hugo Lloris at all. He’s not a full bag of tricks. De Gea has been brilliant at times.
“The other one I like is Tim Krul. But, once again, there’s lots of foreign keepers in there which is a shame for English keepers coming through. There’s not enough and you have to look to foreign keepers.”
* Bruce Grobbelaar is a big supporter of Men United. He is helping the bid to beat Prostate Cancer. Visit menunited.prostatecanceruk.org for info.
Nice one Brucie! Way to instill confidence into our keeper with 4 games to play. 
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